


The Man Who Ran with Wolves

by skargasm



Series: Raised by Wolves [3]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Hale Fire (Teen Wolf), Alternate Universe, BAMF Chris Argent, BAMF Peter Hale, BAMF Stiles, F/M, Good Alpha Talia Hale, Left Hand Peter Hale, Left Hand Stiles Stilinski, M/M, Murder Husbands, Werewolf Stiles Stilinski
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:07:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 26,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28046694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skargasm/pseuds/skargasm
Summary: The Boy Raised with Wolveshas grown up – althoughcertainpeople don't seem to realise it. With his best friend missing and a new threat to the Hale Pack, Stiles is about to show Peter and Chris that the boy they knew is all grown up.
Relationships: Chris Argent/Peter Hale, Chris Argent/Peter Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Chris Argent/Stiles Stilinski, Derek Hale/Jackson Whittemore, Peter Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Talia Hale/Original Male Character(s)
Series: Raised by Wolves [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1973692
Comments: 181
Kudos: 235





	1. Scott

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mephistopholes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mephistopholes/gifts), [TummySassAndAss](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TummySassAndAss/gifts), [Afrieal](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Afrieal/gifts).



> This continues on from The Boy Raised by Wolves, with a two-year time jump. It would probably make the most sense if you read that first. 
> 
> As always I do not have a beta - I use Grammarly but it and I miss things on occasion. If you see something glaring - plot hole, spelling, grammar - please let me know (kindly) in the comments and I will try to fix it. 
> 
> If you think any tags should be added, let me know.
> 
> Thank you

This was not exactly how Scott had expected to spend his 18th birthday. His Mom had given him the keys to a new car – well, new to him anyway – and the clinic had told him that his treatment was officially over which meant that they would be returning to Beacon Hills shortly. 

When his friend, Theo, had suggested a hike through the local woods – teasing Scott with a bottle of booze that he had pilfered from somewhere – Scott had figured it was a rite of passage. No one would think anything less of him for it. He’d already spoken to Stiles and opened his present from him. 

The darkness of the woods felt spooky and alien – nothing at all like they had always seemed before. And Theo seemed off somehow. Always before, he had deferred to Scott in what they did with their time together, allowing Scott to be the leader. But he was being really insistent – saying that the place he wanted to take Scott was well worth the extra half hour of walking when Scott had been ready to return to the clinic. 

“Theo – “

“Not long now, Scott,” Theo replied, pushing on through the trees.

“Why can’t we just sit down here and have a drink?” Scott whined, tired and more than a little out of breath. His asthma might be more under control thanks to the clinic but it wasn’t _completely_ gone. Checking over his shoulder, the clinic seemed a long way away, the lights barely visible through the thickness of the trees. Scott felt a prickle of awareness – something was watching them, something predatory. “Or – I wonder if we should get back?”

“Stop being such a pussy!” Theo grunted at him, his scowl highlighted by the brightness of the moon through the tops of the trees. “Jesus, all you ever do is moan and complain!”

“That’s not true!” Scott retorted, stung by Theo’s statement. “Why are you being like this? Is this because I told you that I was going back to Beacon Hills?”

“Don’t be stupid,” Theo muttered, “You going back there was always on the cards.” Scott saw the bushes to his left moving and stopped in his tracks. 

“Theo – I think there’s something out there,” he said, frozen in place. 

“Like what?”

“I don’t know – an animal of some kind! There were reports of a few animal attacks recently – “

“You’re being ridiculous, Scott. Not far now,” Theo said, walking up to Scott and tugging at his arm. “Just come on.”

“You’re hurting me!” Scott protested, trying to tug his arm free from Theo’s tight grip. He flinched when Theo turned and gave him a dark glare, his eyes glinting blue in the moonlight. “Your eyes – “

Before he could say anything else, people emerged from the trees. There was a dark-haired woman, her eyes glowing ruby red in the light, a feral grin on her face; a set of twins about his age, muscled torsos revealed by the scant clothing they were wearing; a very large man with a brutish face, his expression cruel and finally a man using a walking cane. He was tall and almost elegant looking, his face refined, his expression almost benevolent beneath large, dark sunglasses. They looked incongruous and made Scott wonder if the man was blind. But if he was blind, what was he doing walking through the woods in the middle of the night?

“Well done, Theo – I did wonder if you would come through for us,” he said, his voice civilised and urbane. 

“When have I ever let you down, Duke?” Theo said, pulling Scott forward with a jolt so that he landed on his knees in front of the man with the cane. 

“So true. I know that your time here has – _chafed_ – but it has been well worth it. The information we have obtained from young Mr McCall here on how things are going with the Hales has been invaluable.”

“So we can go home now? I can stop playing the role of kid and putting up with all the mothering and fussing?” Theo stated, walking to stand just behind Deucalion. Scott looked up at the small crowd of people, fear coursing through him. 

“Yes – we are going back to Beacon Hills. And we are finally going to put into action the last stages of my plan,” Deucalion said, stepping forward until he was right in front of Scott. If he was blind, he was incredibly adept at moving silently – Scott could almost imagine that he could see. That was until he removed the dark sunglasses he was wearing, revealing the dark holes where his eyes had been. As he watched, the sockets began to glow red, the man’s face contorting, jaw bulging until he slowly morphed into something closely resembling a wolf. Saliva dripped from his open maw, sharp fangs appearing, the eyes boring into Scott’s as Deucalion pulled him up by the arm until he was hanging from the monstrous strong man, hot breath suddenly on his cheek. “And so it begins.”

* * *

”Fuck you!” Stiles shouted, slamming out of the house and stomping away. Peter gave a frustrated sigh, turning to Christopher as if hoping he would have something to say.

“Don’t look at me – you know I don’t like to get into the middle of things when you two fight!” Christopher stated calmly, getting up from the bed as he did so.

“He’s being unreasonable!” Peter said, grabbing his robe and putting it on. “He knows why things are the way they are – “

“Lorilee has been particularly trying lately – she knows he feels guilty about Brett even after all of this time and plays on that. Besides, he’s 18 in less than two weeks – even to me it seems slightly ridiculous that you insist on this whole – chastity thing,” Christopher interrupted and Peter scowled. 

“You know why!” 

“Peter – neither you nor I are Kate, and he is not David. **You** need to let go of all of that guilt too – it’s poisoning things between the three of us,” Christopher said seriously, coming over and putting his hands onto Peter’s shoulders. “Show him the respect he is due, communicate with him and maybe we can stop beginning every day with a fight. Or worse, whenever he sees us being affectionate towards each other, he will stop feeling left out. You are causing more damage than you realise.”

“I fucking hate it when you’re the voice of reason,” Peter grumbled, dropping his head to Christopher’s chest. “I’ll talk to him – _after_ he’s let off some steam. I can only assume he’s gone to the training rooms – I don’t want to get between him and his punching bag.”

“Yes – there are times when his ferocity in training terrifies me slightly,” Christopher said. “Now, why don’t you go and check on your sister? I know you like to begin the day by ‘hearing’ your new niece or nephew.”

“Talia is having a hard time with this one,” Peter said, biting his lip. His sister was struggling with the latest pregnancy. What should have been a happy accident seemed to have sent her spiralling into a cycle of worry and ferocity. The new Hale Mansion had more security than some maximum-security prisons and she was paranoid about having her children out of her sight. To be fair, after David’s death, it was understandable but it could be difficult for the people around her to handle. 

“Has Deaton said anything?”

“He mentioned the possibility of twins although they do not run in the family. And I haven’t caught more than one heartbeat,” Peter replied. 

“Then reassure her, give Stiles some space, and then maybe you can concentrate on our meeting with Parrish later today? I don’t want to have to do it alone – if he’s going to be part of the pack, we are going to have to speak to him sooner rather than later. Laura is already chafing at the restraints regarding telling him.” 

Peter sighed. His niece’s relationship with the young sheriff was a high point for many of them – it was nice to see family finding and settling down with their mate. But there was something about Parrish that Peter wasn’t happy about and he had been forced to tell Laura that she couldn’t reveal her nature to him until he had completed his investigations. Unfortunately, his contacts had failed magnificently in providing Peter with much information other than his army record. But there was definitely something about Parrish – 

“Are you sure we can’t just run away to a tropical island and live a life of luxury, just the three of us?” Peter said. 

“You’d be bored in minutes and you know it,” Christopher replied. “Now – cover up this delicious body and get to it. Busy day ahead.” He turned and headed to the bathroom and Peter allowed himself the time to enjoy the view of his lover. He knew that he was very lucky: he had Christopher and Stiles; the pack and territory had been stable for nearly two years now; he was welcoming a new niece or nephew within the next few months – things were going well. So why did he have such a sense of dread?

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

[ ](https://imgur.com/eGY1T0q)

Peter stood in the doorway to the training room, watching as Stiles took out his anger and frustration on the punching bag. Stiles wore nothing but a pair of sweatpants which hung low on his hips, his hands wrapped for protection as he pounded away at the bag. He had grown out his hair and was currently sporting what Peter laughingly referred to as his attempt at a ‘mountain man’ beard. He looked – sexy and dangerous and everything that Peter could ever want.

Peter knew part of the reason he was holding back was related to David and what had happened to him with Kate. Christopher was right – Peter didn’t want anything like that to taint their relationship. But that wasn’t the whole reason. Perhaps it was time he revealed it to Stiles.

Walking into the training room, he knew the exact moment that Stiles became aware of him. The other man stiffened slightly, his footwork and punching hesitating momentarily before continuing with renewed ferocity. 

“Do you ever think about how you came into my life? You were just five years old and had lost your parents. For a while, I was worried – _scared_ – that the only reason you cared about me was that I was a new constant in your life. Then there was the age difference – like my nephews and nieces, you might have seen me as an uncle figure. 

I tried so hard **not** to take over your entire life – I failed, obviously, which was another reason why I had to leave. You have never quite understood how much I want you, Stiles – how much I **need** you. It's like a fire in my blood, tearing me to pieces and making me whole at the same time.

Some of it is a control thing. I don’t like how much I need you – how much I know that if something happened to you, I would burn down the entire world. You are my only weakness in this whole world of ours and I cannot bear the idea that someone may decide to hurt you because of that.

You think that this desire of mine to wait to consummate our relationship is because I do not see you as an equal when in truth it is far from that. It is because I know that once I finally have you – I mean, completely have you – that there is zero chance I will ever let you go. That I would want to solder you to my side, that I would stand in the way of the opportunities in life that might present themselves to you. 

Ever since I met you, I have wanted to make you completely mine. The beast inside me wants to hold you down and mark you, sink my teeth into the softness of your throat and literally consume you so that you will always be a part of me. 

I am not a man when it comes to you, Stiles. I am a consuming force and I am constantly fighting to **not** do that to you. You should have the chance to see if there is someone else out there for you – hell, Christopher alone would be a safer match for you. 

I dream of your skin, of its softness beneath my hands, of tracing the muscles in your body, of burying my face between the cheeks of your ass and only inhaling your base scent for the rest of my days. I want to fuck you, make love to you, have you, take you – I spend my days watching your every move, learning your every quirk. I am jealous of every smile, every laugh you share with anyone else even while I am proud of the man you have become – of how our pack-mates know they can rely on you, on what an incredible person you are.

So, forgive me for the choices I have made that seemed to not respect you; forgive me for creating artificial barriers between us. I do it, not because I do not want you but because I want you **too** much.”

Peter fell to the ground at the weight of Stiles as the other man threw himself at him, the breath knocked out of him by the impact. 

“And you think it’s any different for me?” Stiles said, his voice husky, his hands harsh as the ripped off Peter’s shirt to reach his skin. “You think that I haven’t wondered whether I’m normal for how much I want you? I love Chris – I want him almost more than anything else in the world. But you – you I need, you I cannot live without. And it kills me a little inside every day that you hold yourself back from me.”

“Stiles – “

“I am nearly 18 years old and in my entire life, the only other person than you that I have ever truly seen or wanted is Chris. You are a part of me in a way that I cannot fathom and it terrifies me. But Peter – I refuse to live my life scared of that. I refuse to risk never having you, never experiencing things with you because I am scared.” Stiles grabbed his face, forcing their eyes to meet, the electric blue piercing him. “Stop thinking you’re alone in this and accept that for whatever reason, you and I are insane for each other – we fit, we belong, we _need_ each other. Others may not understand, may judge, but I don’t give a fuck about others. Stop holding yourself back from me – if we drown in each other, then let us drown. I want to bathe in your body, I want to feel you from the inside, I want to know every nook and cranny of you so that there is nothing about you that I do not know.”

“Then perhaps we should adjourn to the bedroom so that none of our family has to witness us consuming each other.” Lifting his hands, Peter brushed back the sweaty hair hanging around Stiles’ face, searching his face. “Be sure, Stiles – please.” 

Stiles lowered his head until their lips touched, the kiss soft despite the almost visceral need pulsing between them. 

“This isn’t about sex – not about a teenage boy wanting to fuck anyone just to say that he has. This – this is for life, Peter Hale. I will never let you go,” he muttered against Peter’s lips and Peter exhaled on a sigh. 

“I love you, Stiles and you – own me,” he said softly, letting go of his fears and accepting that he could have this. That for whatever reason, Stiles felt the same about him as he did for Stiles. Another soft kiss and then Stiles jumped to his feet, taking Peter’s hand and pulling him up. 

“Let’s go. We need to collect Chris and then lock ourselves away for a few days,” Stiles declared, adjusting his sweatpants in an attempt to hide the obvious thrust of his arousal. 

“Agreed,” said Peter, licking his lips as he took in the sweat covered body in front of him. Clasping hands, they moved towards the door to the training room, coming to a stop when Derek met them in the doorway. “What is it?” Peter asked, taking in the tense demeanour.

“We’ve had a call from Melissa McCall – Scott’s gone missing,” Derek said, frowning.

“Missing? But – “ Stiles interrupted.

“And she received a letter telling her that she needed to contact us and let us know that getting Scott back depended on what we chose to do,” Derek continued.

“A letter from who?” Peter asked, confused. 

“It was signed the Alpha Pack.”

* * *

Scott whimpered as Ennis feinted towards him, squeezing himself into the corner to make himself as small as possible. Ennis was the most brutal of the pack, using any excuse to beat Scott or even no excuse at all. In the time he had been with the Alpha Pack, Scott had suffered more than he could ever have imagined and he still had no idea why. 

Ennis laughed and walked away and Scott sighed in relief, closing his eyes momentarily. Sometimes he wished Ennis would just kill him – would go too far with one of his beatings and break Scott’s neck and put him out of his misery. But Ennis was too scared of Deucalion to do that, always holding back _just_ enough that Scott survived. 

“Poor little omega – you stink of fear.” Kali’s soft voice made him open his eyes, panic rushing through him. Kali was the one he was the most scared of – she wasn’t brutal, she was vicious and liked playing mind games. She liked to make him feel safe and cared for, taking care of his wounds only to inflict others when he finally relaxed. “Would you like me to make you feel better?” she asked in a silky tone, her index finger running down his cheek in a gentle caress. “Would you like me to make you feel pleasure instead of pain?” she continued, her claw emerging so that as she continued to trace lines down his skin, lines of blood followed in a thin trickle. 

“Kali – leave the pup alone,” Deucalion said from across the room and Scott’s eyes flicked to the man, before returning to Kali’s pouting expression.

“Why won’t you let me fuck him? He’s the lowest of the low – he’s _ours_ to do with what we will and I want to play with him,” she said in a sulky tone. 

“Because I said so,” Deucalion stated firmly. “We need him capable of travelling to Beacon Hills and if I let you have your way with him, we’ll have to wait until he heals. I remember what you did to the last one.” 

Kali groaned but obediently got to her feet, kicking Scott casually before walking away.

“Fine – but once we’re there, I get a chance to break him in properly,” she said, and Scott curled in on himself. He could feel the lines where she had scratched him healing sluggishly, the skin itchy and tingling. He still wasn’t sure what they  
had done to him – that night in the forest was a blur of pain and confusion.

“Crate him up – it’s time for us to return. His mother has been in touch with the Pack and we need to make our presence felt,” Deucalion said and the atmosphere in the room became charged. Theo, the twins, Kali and Ennis seemed almost frenzied in their excitement as they began to pack up the room and Scott wondered what Deucalion meant. Whatever it was, Scott had the feeling that it didn’t bode well for him.

* * *


	3. Revelations and Concerns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, I haven't abandoned this - Christmas, New Year and new lockdown in the UK kinda delayed things but I'm hoping to get back into this story and get it done!

Stiles took a seat opposite Melissa in the booth, aware of Jackson in his periphery vision taking a seat at a table nearby. He knew Peter was outside – somewhere – but wasn’t sure how many other members of the Pack had come with him. 

“Stiles – “

“Hi, Mel,” he said, taking in the ravages that worry and fear had wrought. Her hair was a tangled mess, dark circles under her eyes, her lips dry and bitten. 

“What the hell – “

“I hate doing this, but I have to ask you – did they send you here?”

“Who? I wish to God someone would tell me what is going on – “ Melissa ran her fingers through her hair, her hands shaking. “My son is missing and apparently I need to speak to you about it! But what would you know? You weren’t in Switzerland – and who the hell is – “

“Okay, okay, I’m gonna need you to stay calm for me, please,” he said, accepting that whatever else was going on, Melissa knew nothing. It made this all the harder. “Do you remember what happened to my parents? The hospital?”

“Yes, but – Stiles – “

“My Mom and Dad got caught in the cross-fire of a – war. They weren’t knocked off the road by a hit and run driver – they were attacked by a rival – group of people,” Stiles said. The waitress came over and he ordered a black coffee, thankful for the minor break. “A lot of this is going to seem unbelievable to you, but I need you to suspend disbelief for a little while.”

“Stiles – I don’t have time for games – “

“This isn’t a game!” he said forcefully and she stiffened, looking fearful. “Melissa – I would _never_ hurt you – or Scott – but there are some things you need to know and I need you to stay calm while I tell you. There’s a reason I asked you to meet me here, in a public place. It was to help you feel safe.”

“You’re scaring me,” she admitted, taking a shaky sip of her coffee. “Stiles – “

“I guarantee that you’ve seen things in the hospital that seemed – unreal. A little out of the norm. Maybe they were dismissed as drug-related, a fluke, machinery malfunction.”

“Why are we talking about the hospital?”

“Do you remember my miraculous recovery? Everyone had given up hope – they thought I was going to die,” Stiles said, stopping once again when the waitress appeared with his coffee.

“I remember – your injuries were so severe and then you had a seizure or – “

“It wasn’t a seizure. I was bitten – by an Alpha werewolf,” Stiles said flatly.

“Jesus Christ! I don’t have time for – “ Melissa’s words froze in her throat when Stiles flashed his eyes at her, the disbelief clear on her face. 

“You want to believe that what you just saw was a trick of the light – that you imagined it because you’re tired from jet-lag and fear. But it was real – and there’s more – “ With a glance around to ensure no one was paying attention, Stiles placed his hand on the table so that she could see it. Smoothly, he allowed the change to come over his hand, claws lengthening, fur covering the back of his hand. 

“Jesus Christ!” Melissa lurched backwards and Stiles reached out and snatched the cup as it fell, preventing her from being burned by the spilling coffee. “What the hell are you?!” she asked, her hand covering her mouth in shock.

“I was turned into a werewolf to save my life – and because I’m the mate of the Left Hand of the Hale Pack,” Stiles said, setting the cup onto the table and allowing his hand to return to his human form. “We believe that the Alpha Pack have taken Scott as the first step to a territory war.”

“The Alpha Pack?” Melissa said faintly, leaning away from Stiles and keeping her eyes on him. “What are – who are – ?”

“They’re a Pack of Alphas. Normally, they roam but it would appear that they want Beacon Hills and have taken Scott as a precursor to trying to take over,” Stiles explained calmly. “The Hales are not going to let that happen – and we are going to do everything we can to get Scott back for you.”

“Will they – have they hurt him? Turned him?” Melissa asked.

“I don’t know – not yet.” He reached for her hand, wincing when she flinched away from him. “I’m sorry – this was not something you or Scott were ever meant to be involved in – we would far prefer to keep our existence a secret but they’ve made that impossible. I know you’re scared – “

“Are you – are you a monster?” She sounded so young, so terrified, and Stiles wished with all of his heart that this had never had to happen. He grieved for the friend he had once had in her – she was looking at him with fear and slight loathing, distrust seeping from her.

“No – I’m a predator but I’m not a monster. The Hales saved my life and I think, if you look back on things, there has **never** been a time when any of them have done anything to harm the people of Beacon Hills,” he explained, hoping she would hear him. “We serve the people of Beacon Hills, keep them safe from the supernatural and others who would seek to harm them. But not everyone who is like us is peaceful – like humans, not everyone is good.”

“But they killed your parents – they took Scott – “

“Some of them did, yes. But think about the Hales that you know – think of Derek, Laura, Cora – David – “

“David! What happened to him? It was all hushed up and – “

“David was killed by hunters – people who thought that we didn’t have the right to exist just because we’re different,” Stiles said stiffly, the loss of his brother still fresh even after two years. “You know that people are scared of anything different – these hunters took that to extremes.”

“Jesus, Stiles, I – “ Melissa put her face into her hands, overwhelmed. “I can’t take this in – I don’t – “

“I would like to invite you out to the Hale House – give you an opportunity to speak to my Alpha, get answers to all of your questions. But I wanted to do this here so that you would know you can leave if you want to – we’re not going to harm you, Mel.”

“These Alphas – this Alpha Pack – will they have hurt him?”

“We don’t know. But we need to be prepared for anything. I’m sorry,” Stiles said, watching as the woman took several deep breaths and then squared our shoulders. 

“Your Alpha? Who is it?”

“Talia Hale is our Alpha.”

“But she’s a woman!” Melissa said in shock and Stiles chuckled.

“Yes, but she’s a bad-ass woman who keeps an entire pack of werewolves and other creatures in line. You know Talia – you’ve been helping her with her pregnancy – she hasn’t changed just because you know what she is now,” Stiles said. “She’s a strong woman who has been through a lot – and maybe that will help you, talking to someone you can relate to.”

“She’s – was she bitten or – “

“No. The Hales were born wolves,” Stiles said. “There’s only so much I can say here. Think about it, Mel, then give us a call – we’ll help you understand as much as we can, and we **will** be doing everything we can to get Scott back.”

“I don’t need to think about it – I’ll – I’ll come with you now,” Melissa said, gathering her belongings. “I want my son and I’ll deal with whoever I have to to get him back.”

* * *

”Who was there?”

“I saw the kanima and Stiles – I didn’t see anyone else,” Ethan said, sitting down next to Deucalion.

“I doubt very much that they were the only ones there – but then, Peter and Chris are hardly going to be obvious.” Deucalion tapped his fingers on the table. “How did he look?”

“Who?”

“Stiles, of course!” Ethan winced at the anger in Deucalion’s voice, becoming more and more unsure about what they were doing. Deucalion seemed to be obsessed with this Stiles – ever since he had learned about the boy who acted as Left Hand alongside Peter Hale, he had thirsted for as much information about him as he could. This entire thing – the sudden desire for territory, taking that boy McCall – everything led back to this Stiles. He and Aiden had talked about it, concluding that if need be, they would take out Stiles. They had a good existence and they didn’t want to see it fall to pieces because of some strange boy.

“He – looked good, I guess,” Ethan replied, wincing when Deucalion scowled. 

“Useless! I need a better pair of eyes apparently,” Deucalion said. “Kali – I want some surveillance on the Hales. We need to know what they’re doing, how they’re preparing.” 

Kali appeared from the other room and Ethan rose from the table and backed away. Kali was – unpredictable. She liked chaos, inflicting pain, and Deucalion – mostly in that order. Ethan had little doubt that she was looking forward to fighting the Hales, despite how large their Pack was, and he was almost as fearful of her motives as he was of Deucalion’s.

“Can we just grab a couple of them, interrogate?” she asked, coming to stand at Deucalion’s shoulder.

“No – I would prefer that they not know that we are in town as yet,” Deucalion replied. “Observation only,” he ordered.

“Fine. But I get to play with the pup when I get back,” Kali negotiated. 

“Kali – “

“What? I’ve left him alone since Switzerland – he’s becoming complacent.” Ethan winced at her words. The last word he would use to describe McCall was complacent. The boy was a quivering wreck, terrified of the slightest sound, whimpering in the corner of his cage. If Deucalion didn’t do something to curb Ennis’s worst impulses there would be nothing left of him to use as a bargaining tool with the Hales.

“Fine – return with some useful intel and you can have some time with the puppy,” Deucalion agreed. Backing out of the room, Ethan found himself wondering if this time, he and his brother were on the right team.

* * *


	4. A Mother who Understands

“Boyd, I’m pregnant, not incapable!” Melissa watched from the porch as Talia Hale walked around her garden with Vernon Boyd. They had been squabbling the whole time they were outside, with Boyd being protective of his Alpha, and Talia insisting she was more than capable of walking around her own garden safely.

Melissa knew that Talia was having a hard time with this pregnancy, although she wasn’t actively involved in the other woman’s care. It made sense – after what had happened to her son, she was hyper-aware of everything regarding her family, showing symptoms of hypertension. 

Once they had arrived at the Hale House, Stiles and Jackson had said goodbye and left Melissa to talk to Talia. Melissa had looked at the other woman with new eyes. She was an Alpha Werewolf, the head of the Hale Pack – the news had been a shock, and she was still trying to align the Talia she knew with the new information. She remembered when Talia and Peter had come to visit Stiles at the hospital after the unfortunate death of his parents; remembered writing a recommendation when she and her husband had applied to foster him; the joy on Stiles’ face when he left the hospital with his new family.

Her time in Switzerland – the funds and programme made so much more sense following her conversation with Talia – had been revitalising and Melissa had begun to think that she was going to be able to start afresh, not be weighed down by fear and concern for her son’s health, suffocating under bills and responsibilities. 

All of that had changed.

“There are at least five members of the Pack that would have my head if I let _anything_ happen to you, Talia – and that’s not including what Erica would do to me if I didn’t treat you like precious glass!” Boyd replied, hovering behind the woman. “Besides which, you may be my Alpha but I’d wager that Stiles has a stronger right hook than you do!”

“I wouldn’t bet on that!” Talia laughed.

“Well, I **know** I can outrun you with that bump of yours!” The affection between the two of them seemed genuine – in fact, Melissa had seen nothing but love and caring between the members of the Pack she had observed since her arrival. Nothing at all like she had expected. It almost gave her hope, but she knew that she couldn’t afford to take the risk. There was too much at stake. 

Straightening her shoulders, she stepped out into the garden and walked over to Talia. 

“Alpha Hale.”

“Oh, please – call me Talia. It’s a title that is only used by other Packs and occasionally, as a mark of respect. You don’t have to call me Alpha,” Talia replied, smiling at Melissa as she nodded at Boyd. He stepped a respectful distance away – enough to give the illusion of privacy whilst guarding his Alpha. 

“I – this is all been so overwhelming. The situation with the Alpha Pack – I don’t understand what they want from you,” she said, twisting her hands together in front of her.

“Peter and Stiles believe that it’s a territory grab but I find myself thinking there is more to it than that,” Talia replied. “Taking Scott – sending the message through you – it’s an invitation to war. What I know of Deucalion says that he won’t just have one agenda.”

“You know of him?”

“I do. We looked into the family journals when we received your message. He was blinded by hunters during a previous visit to Beacon Hills – when my Father was Alpha,” Talia explained. “It was unfortunate – it was one of the few injuries a wolf could not recover from, especially as the hunter in question treated the weapon used with a special kind of mountain-ash.”

“So – how did he come to be part of the Pack that he’s in now?”

“Some of this does not make my kind come off very well. I would hate for you to think that we are all like that,” Talia said, watching Melissa carefully.

“Stiles made a very good point – there are bad humans and bad wolves – it is what it is,” Melissa replied. 

“Very well,” Talia agreed with a nod, moving slowly around the garden. “The details are not completely clear – no one survived to tell the tale completely. A Beta challenged Deucalion – said that no one wanted to follow a blind Alpha. Deucalion was successful at beating off the challenge and in the process received a power boost. He deduced that killing one of his betas had given him the rush – he then killed the rest of them, one at a time – in small groups – until he had decimated his entire pack and become the powerful wolf he is today.”

“Jesus,” Melissa replied, unable to comprehend such wholesale slaughter. “These pack members – “

“Are not always family. But even so – to destroy your pack in that manner, to kill the people who are _yours_ in a way that cannot be explained – it is a travesty of what an alpha should be.”

“And the people with him?”

“I understand that Deucalion persuaded them to do the same and they decided that the power was worth the loss,” Talia said, trailing her fingertips over the top of some flowers. “Bad enough that one Alpha did it – to find that multiple alphas were willing to sacrifice their betas in that manner – truly horrendous.” 

“You said that you thought that Deucalion had ulterior motives?” Melissa asked, trailing behind Talia, putting her hands into her pockets.

“Yes. It can’t simply be about territory – although Beacon Hills does hold certain attractions to people of the supernatural persuasion,” Talia replied. “I think there is a far more personal reason behind what he’s doing.”

“What do you think it is?”

“Stiles has garnered a reputation within our community. He’s young to have attained the position of Left Hand alongside Peter, and he shows certain – gifts – that wolves value highly,” Talia explained. “Add to which, he is mated to the Left Hand of the Hale Pack – in itself, that makes him an attractive hostage/prospect. To lose him would be enough to cause Peter to become unhinged unless he had someone to hold him back, keep him grounded.”

“That sounds terrifying,” Melissa said, shifting closer to Talia. 

“Indeed. I think Deucalion covets what Peter has, and what Stiles represents. He killed whatever chance he might have had at a mate when he killed his Pack,” Talia stated. “Unfortunately, I think that means that Deucalion has lost whatever perspective he ever had on the situation – and as for the alphas that run in his pack – “

“They **would** harm Scott,” Melissa stated, an edge of fear and resignation to her voice.

“I believe so,” Talia said gently. “I do understand, Melissa.” For a moment, the two women stood face to face, a look of sorrow and understanding on Talia’s face. “I understand.”

Realising that if she didn’t act now, she wouldn’t do it at all, Melissa pulled the syringe out of her pocket and jabbed it into the soft swell of Talia’s pregnant belly, pressing to release the contents.

“He said – he said to tell you that it is a slow-acting wolfsbane that you may be able to fight off, but it could still harm the pup. You have 24 hours to contact him to arrange a parley, and if you refuse – he **will** kill Scott, and you and your pup may die!” Melissa repeated the message that Deucalion had told her, tears streaming down her face. “I’m sorry – I’m so sorry – the thought of losing Scott – “

Boyd’s arms came around her, pulling her away from Talia at the same time as Laura and Cora appeared by their mother’s side, half carrying her into the house. 

“I can’t lose Scott – I’m so sorry – “

* * *

”Did she do as instructed?” Deucalion asked, sipping from his cup of tea. 

“She did. In fact, we might have been better off biting her – she’s shown more mettle than this worthless lump,” Kali replied, kicking Scott and drawing out a whimper of pain from the young man. 

“What did the Hales do?”

“They carried her off inside – I wasn’t able to get a view inside but I imagine they took her off to bed, then tried to figure out what type of wolfsbane it was,” Kali replied. “They took Melissa into custody – were quite gentle with her to all intents and purposes – so I would imagine that they’re interrogating her now.”

“Well, she knows what is at stake – I don’t think she’ll risk her son, not that she knows enough to cause us any difficulties.” 

“No. I left Ennis keeping an eye on the Hales, see if they try to get up to any tricks,” Kali replied, dragging Scott across the room by his hair and shoving him into his cage. “Duke – about the twins – “

“Ah, you have sensed their unease as well. Yes, I was wondering what we should do about them.”

“It’s more Ethan than Aiden,” Kali said, returning to the couch to take a seat next to him. “I don’t know how Aiden would react if we were to dispatch Ethan – he has a strong sense of self-preservation.”

“He does indeed,” Deucalion mused. “Perhaps we could appeal to that, get him to understand what it at risk if his brother continues to be so squeamish. He hasn’t refused any orders as of yet, but the potential is there.”

“So we offer him a choice – handle his brother or we will handle both of them?” Kali asked and Deucalion nodded. 

“Yes – I think that would be for the best. A show of loyalty and getting rid of a problem at the same time. Quite efficient,” Deucalion said, sounding pleased with the arrangement. 

“I’ll talk to Aiden the first chance I get,” Kali said. “But in the meantime, what happens now?”

“Now? We wait for them to contact us – if they are anywhere near the powerful pack they claim to be, they should be able to find us within the 24 hours stated. If they don’t contact us, well then they’re not as powerful as they claim and we move forward. Either way, I do believe that was an excellent day’s work.”

* * *

Chris followed Stiles’ directions to the letter, melting into the trees to the left whilst Peter and Stiles took the centre and right position. His infrared goggles made the Preserve a strange place, but constant practice working together made him comfortable with his role. The large Alpha was ahead, hiding in a wild area of the Preserve. It gave him a view of the Hale House that wasn’t perfect, but they had done a lot to ensure that getting close to the house undetected was next to impossible. A rustle in the trees to his right, and he saw Peter in his wolf form moving swiftly forwards at the same time as Stiles gave the hand signal. Squatting down, Chris shifted the goggles onto his head and put the sight of the rifle to his eye, confirming the location of the large Alpha. 

While he watched, Stiles and Peter attacked, dragging him out of the bushes and into a slightly larger area. The alpha instantly took advantage of the extra space, sending Stiles crashing backwards with a vicious punch to the face. The huge wolf jumped up and sank its teeth into his arm, jerking its head from side to side as it tore through the fabric to the flesh beneath, savaging his arm.

It took everything within Chris to stick to the plan: keep the big alpha in his sights and put him down if need be. Stiles was back on his feet in an instant, eyes glowing blue as he jumped into the fray. Between he and Peter, they dragged the alpha down onto the ground and held him in place. From the trees, Jackson emerged in his kanima form, tail swishing angrily back and forth as he skittered over the ground towards them. 

“Nothing lethal,” Stiles said and Chris realised that Jackson was angry because Stiles had been hit. He was a possessive bastard when it came to the whole master thing and Chris always felt like almost everyone around Stiles wanted/needed him in some way that the young man never really understood. With a hiss, Jackson struck with his tail, stabbing into the chest of the struggling alpha. As he turned to leave the scene, Jackson contemptuously sliced his tail across the Alpha’s throat, clearly marking where he would have struck if Stiles hadn’t intervened. 

Stiles turned to where he knew Chris would be and gestured him forward and shouldering his weapon Chris moved closer. Time to transport the alpha and ask him a few questions.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I tell you the prompt I'm using for this fic is 'Beware the Nice Ones'?


	5. Progress

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: insensitive talk of miscarriage, descriptions of torture, homophobic comments, gaslighting - for more information, check out the notes at the end.

Ennis struggled to his feet, shifting the shackles that bound him and faced the three men who had walked into his cell. He recognised Peter Hale – everyone in the supernatural community knew about him. The other two – they had to be the boy that Deucalion had such a boner for and Chris Argent, the hunter turned slut for wolf-dick. He grinned as they closed the door to the cell and faced him.

“How’s your bitch of an Alpha? Has she lost the whelp yet?” There was not a flicker of emotion from any of them, Hale walking over to the table in the corner and dropping a canvas wrapped package onto it. In complete silence, he unrolled it, revealing a line of what looked like toothpicks, as well as several vials, some containing liquid, some herbs. “Or was she so weak that she already died? No matter – I understand you have a couple of other bitches. They’re all the same really – only good for fucking and breeding. Although, you’re not interested in that, are you? Do you bend over for both of them, Hale? Give it up to the little boy here?”

Nothing. Not an eyebrow twitch, no tic, not even the firming of lips. They simply stared at him whilst Hale got everything prepared before coming to stand before him. 

“Good morning, Ennis. I hope you found the accommodations to your liking,” Peter said pleasantly, stepping back to avoid the headbutt Ennis aimed in his direction. “I understand the mountain ash coating the silver shackles might be a little uncomfortable, but a big, strong were like you can handle a tiny bit of pain I would imagine.”

Peter turned to Stiles and nodded before he and Christopher stepped outside of the room to grab chairs. 

Stiles stepped forward and his facial expression changed for the first time. The grin he gave Ennis was calculated and slightly feral, his eyes flashing blue and giving away his agitation and excitement.

“I don’t normally get a chance to play with people for a long time – they don’t have the stamina to cope with the things I want to do to them. So, thank you for this opportunity,” he said calmly. “And, of course, the attack on my Alpha provides ample motivation to do my best work. A lot of people look at me and think I’m a boy. I think it’s my baby smooth cheeks personally, which is why I’ve been trying to grow a bit of a beard. Not a full on goatee thing like Peter over there – I’m not up for that much maintenance and primping. I hope you appreciate the fact that I shaved off my peach fuzz for this event – it’s hell getting blood out of the little hairs to be frank.”

Ennis tried to laugh, sneering at the boy’s words.

“You think he can get anything out of me?” he said to Peter and Christopher who had returned to the room and placed their chairs so that they had a prime view of everything that was going on.

“Let’s see, shall we?”

* * *

”What the hell do you mean, Ennis didn’t check in?” Deucalion ran into a chair, shoving it to one side. The fact that he made such a rudimentary error in getting around was proof of his agitation and Ethan backed away until he was close to the door. There was no way in hell that this was going to end well.

“I went to the meeting place and waited and he didn’t show up,” Kali said, a hint of nervousness in her voice.

“Fine – we’ll get to that in a moment. Has there been any sign of Talia Hale? Any action at all?”

“No, none,” Kali admitted and Deucalion roared, throwing his cane across the room in his rage. Kali ducked but Aiden wasn’t fast enough, the cane striking him in the face and knocking him to the ground. 

“I am surrounded by simpletons! This was the **easy** part of the plan – all we had to do was poison that bitch Talia and keep an eye on them!” Deucalion shouted, spittle flying from his lips as lost all trace of his normally civilised and urbane exterior. “If they have captured Ennis – “

“They haven’t! He just missed a check in – you know what Ennis is like, Duke,” Kali said, her tone conciliatory and soothing. “And as for Talia – it wasn’t as if they could take her to the hospital now could they? What were they going to say – she was injected with something that’s going to abort her cub?”

“The McCall woman – did you see any sign of her? What have they done with her? If she had done something like that when I had a full pack, I would have – “

“What have you done to my Mom?” Scott’s voice was timid but it was a shock nevertheless. He hadn’t spoken in some time, preferring to keep himself squeezed up against the back of his cage and out of sight. 

“Your Mother was sacrificed for the greater good,” Deucalion said, turning to where Scott’s cage was. “She was sent into the Hale’s dwelling to put their Alpha out of commission and it appears that at least _she_ has accomplished her task!” 

“Will they – will they hurt her for what she did?” Scott asked, sitting up slightly taller. Ethan was amazed – this was the most backbone the boy had shown since he was bitten. His eyes were glowing amber, fangs dropping slightly – this was also the first sign that he accepted his wolf and Ethan was dismayed. He knew well how Deucalion could twist things. 

“Yes. I’m sorry, Scott, you’ve had a – difficult – transition.” Deucalion made his way over to the cage, walking with less than his customary grace as he slowly walked across the room and avoided the debris from his tantrum. “We would never normally have treated you the way we did but – it was done to – “

“We wanted to make you strong,” Theo interjected, having come into the room. He slipped around Ethan and moved to Deucalion’s side. “The Hales had the opportunity to help you – cure you of your asthma all along, but they never did it. Don’t you think that says something about them? Says something about your friend, Stiles?”

“No – he wouldn’t – “ Scott spluttered slightly, the amber in his eyes fading away as his insecurities and lack of surety took over once again. 

“All he had to do was petition his Alpha to bite you and you would have been cured. You would never have had to leave your home, your friends, and start again in Switzerland,” Theo said, reaching into the cage and tugging at Scott’s arm to pull him out. “I wasn’t sure why they’d done it – that was why I didn’t tell you about me when we first met. Deucalion wanted – “

“I wanted to know if you were worthy of the gift that you were being given, if you were strong enough to take your place amongst my pack,” Deucalion took over from Theo smoothly. “I know you feel that you have suffered mightily under our tutelage, but we had to ensure that you were ready for the battle ahead.”

“What do you mean?” Scott stretched slightly, standing next to Theo and looking at Deucalion with confusion in his eyes.

“What would have happened if you had bitten and received no tutelage? Had no idea of the hierarchy? Such a thing goes against everything that we wolves stand for, as I am sure you have realised,” Deucalion explained. “You have survived everything that has been thrown at you – think of it as hazing – and yet, you stand tall and proud.”

“But – my Mom – “

“She understood that in order to be of use to the Pack that she had to put herself into a dangerous position. And she did it – for you, Scott.”

“For me?”

“But, of course. We filled her in on some of the atrocities that the Hales have committed over the years and she knew that coming home would never be safe for you whilst they held Beacon Hills within their grasp. She wanted better for you than that – hasn’t she always?” Scott nodded hesitantly, looking to Theo for confirmation. Theo smiled softly at him, putting an arm around his shoulders. 

“Why don’t I take you to the showers and you can clean yourself up? Then we can get you something to eat and Duke can fill you in on his plans to keep Beacon Hills – all of your friends – safe from the Hales once and for all.” Theo led Scott out of the room, nodding towards Kali as he left. 

Ethan couldn’t believe how quickly things had been turned around and his half-formed thoughts that he could use Scott, form some kind of alliance, fell to pieces. The boy seemed to be falling for what Theo and Deucalion said hook, line and sinker and once they had confirmed that the Hales had indeed killed Melissa McCall, there was little doubt in his mind that Scott would fall in line. It would appear that the loss of Ennis would not affect the group adversely – albeit that Scott was a beta and not an alpha. 

He looked over at his brother, but Aiden avoided his gaze. Dabbing at the bleeding cut on his forehead where the cane had caught him, Aiden either didn’t realise the importance of what they had just witnessed or he didn’t care. Ethan realised that he might have to make the decision about defecting to the Hales without his brother, something he never thought he would even consider. 

“Clean this mess up – when Duke gets back, he’ll want a conducive atmosphere to speak to our new recruit,” Kali ordered before stalking out of the room.

“Aiden – “

“Don’t start, Ethan,” Aiden replied, picking up the chairs that Deucalion had dashed aside. 

“Are you really sure that – “

“I said cut it out!” Aiden shouted, turning on his brother. “What you’re thinking about is suicide – Duke and Kali would make sure of it. And if Ennis is gone, maybe we can have more say in things – “

“You’re _okay_ with what they’re planning?”

“I’m not sure we have any choice.”

* * *

”You know, I’ve heard that pleasure can be used for torture,” Stiles said conversationally, stepping back from placing the latest set of bamboo slivers underneath Ennis’s fingernails. The giant alpha’s hands were swollen, his fingers twisted and bruised. “I don’t think we’re gonna use that on you, though.”

Peter was surprised when Stiles came and straddled him on his seat, his eyes burning blue in his face.

“But that’s not to say I can’t have more of a good time, if you know what I mean,” Stiles said over his shoulder to Ennis. “I’m not gonna lie – you guys fucked up some _seriously_ good plans I had when you started all of this shit.”

Turning back to Peter, Stiles slid himself forward on his thighs until their groins were mashed together. Peter was surprised to find that Stiles was very aroused, the hardness of his dick clear. He looked up as Stiles leaned down, smashing their lips together in an aggressive kiss that ramped up Peter’s desire immediately. He wasn’t passive but he did allow Stiles complete control of the kiss, opening his mouth obediently and accepting the thrust of Stiles’ tongue. 

“Jesus you taste good,” Stiles muttered before diving in for another kiss. Stiles pulled back and turned to face Chris who had somehow moved his chair closer without Peter noticing. “Kiss him.”

Chris obeyed immediately, gripping Peter’s hair and tugging his face towards him so that he could kiss him deeply. One hand cupped Peter’s jaw, holding him in place at an awkward angle, whilst Stiles began to writhe on top of him, rhythmically pressing their bodies together. Reluctantly, Peter pulled away from the kiss, putting his hands onto Stiles' hips to try to stop his driving movements. 

“Stiles – “

Stiles grabbed his hands and shoved them down by his sides, holding them by the wrists in a tight grip. 

“No – you don’t get to talk me out of this,” Stiles hissed, his face twisted with desire. 

“I don’t want to talk you out of this – I told you so in the training room. But perhaps we could finish the torture first?” Peter tried to be reasonable, unable and unwilling to hide his reaction to the display of dominance. “I meant what I said when I said that I would prefer a bed.”

Stiles stopped moving, looking over his shoulder at Ennis who was hanging from his shackles.

“You don’t think if we leave him with those doing their work that he’ll talk later?” Beneath each claw, there were at least five or six small slivers of bamboo. Stiles had soaked them in a mountain ash solution before shoving them beneath Ennis’s fingernails one at a time, letting him feel the pain of each one before moving to the next.

“I think that he’s ready to talk now. And we do need to get a move on,” Peter said smoothly, moaning slightly when Chris dug his fingernails into his hair and tugged. “You’re not helping matters, Christopher.”

“Oh I know,” Chris replied, a smile in his voice. 

“Fine,” Stiles said, getting to his feet and stalking back to Ennis. “The next place I start putting my little wooden friends is your eyes. Or maybe – since you liked that little display despite your pretty homophobic rant earlier – I’ll see if I can pierce your testicles like eggs. How do you think that sounds?” Grabbing Ennis’s head, Stiles pulled it up until they were eye to eye. “I want to know everything about Deucalion and I want to know now.” 

Adjusting his pants, Peter watched as Stiles ruthlessly preceded to get every piece of possible information out of his sobbing, babbling prisoner.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNINGS:  
> * Ennis taunts Stiles, Peter and Chris about Talia losing the baby  
> * Stiles is using bamboo sticks beneath Ennis's claws as torture and this is described  
> * Deucalion and Theo gaslight Scott  
> * talk of using bamboo sticks in Ennis's eyes and also popping his testicles.


	6. Unexpected

Melissa looked up as the door opened, seeing that it was Boyd bringing her a tray of food. The tall man was silent – as he always was when he came in – but she felt the weight of his contempt nevertheless. She got up from the bed and moved towards the bars to accept the tray, a gasp escaping her when the door opened again and Talia Hale walked in.

“You – “

“Hello, Melissa,” Talia said, standing to one side as one of her daughters followed her in with a comfortable chair. “Thanks Laura,” she said before sitting down.

“I – “

“Boyd, you can go.” Boyd gave Talia a disbelieving look and she put her hand onto his wrist. “I’m safe, sweetheart. I know you take my safety seriously but she’s behind bars and has been searched – nothing is going to happen.”

Boyd gave Melissa a blistering look, before lowering his forehead to his Alpha’s hand in acceptance and leaving the room.

“I thought we could have a talk without the others around – as you can see, they are incredibly protective.”

“I don’t understand – Deucalion said – “

“Deucalion said that the injection would incapacitate me, cause me to have a miscarriage at least – at the worst, I should have died. Is that correct?” Melissa felt tears fill her eyes but she nodded. “Deucalion always underestimated people – that’s why he ended up being blinded by Gerard Argent.”

“I don’t understand how you’re here – and seem fine – “

“Did you know Stiles is joint Left Hand with Peter? You probably don’t know what that means – basically, he looks after the pack. The whole pack. He estimates any dangers, decides on what action needs to be taken, how we should proceed. He’s very young for that position, but he is an extraordinary man and has more than earned the position. He’s as vicious as Peter, but is often less of a blunt instrument. They make an amazing pair. Add Chris to that and – well, Deucalion has no idea what he has coming for him.”

“Stiles is – I mean, I always thought he was an amazing kid but – and he’s with Peter? As in _with with_ Peter?” Unable to quite comprehend what Talia was telling her, Melissa pulled up the chair that was in her cell and sat down. 

“I tell you this only so that you might understand a little of what is happening. Stiles knew that you didn’t represent a danger to _him_ when he met with you. He also knew that Deucalion needed someone to get into the house, to gain access. It made the most sense for him to use someone we should never have expected.”

“You knew I was – that I was going to do something to you?”

“We did. There was much debate in the pack as to whether or not we should allow you the opportunity. Stiles was the one who said it was our best chance to get another perspective on what Deucalion is up to. He trusted me to be able to keep myself safe – perhaps more than everyone else.”

“Why didn’t everyone else believe you could keep yourself safe?”

“Because since the death of my son, David, I have been – fragile. This pregnancy hasn’t been easy – it wasn’t planned either, which makes it a little more difficult to take in.”

“I see. Well, actually, I don’t see. I – I did what Deucalion insisted that I do – how come – “

“How come I’m not dead? Because I carry my pregnancies small.” Melissa looked down at the considerably smaller bump the other woman had. “It was a really basic solution – we surrounded my bump with stuffing, a bit like Santa Claus. Incredibly hot but also quite effective. No matter whether you had a knife or – in this case, a syringe – it was never going to be able to get close enough to do real damage. And we knew that Deucalion would want to aim for the baby – he thinks of himself as quite dastardly like that.”

Melissa collapsed back in the chair, sobbing, finally understanding that she had failed. She hadn’t killed the baby or harmed Talia and the flood of relief that came over her was overwhelming. 

“I’m sorry – I am so so sorry! He said – he threatened to kill Scott if I didn’t do it – he said – “

“I can imagine what he said to you and I can understand your terror. Obviously, we can’t release you at present – you _did_ try to kill the Alpha of the territory. But I wanted to reassure you that I am alright, and that we will be handling Deucalion. And hopefully saving your son in the process.”

“Oh Jesus!” Melissa hiccuped a few times, dragging her hands over her face to dry her tears. “You’re still going to save Scott after what I did? I can’t believe - “

“You are a victim in all of this, Melissa. There will be consequences for your actions but we do understand.”

“That’s what you said in the garden – just before I – you said that you understood!” Melissa recalled.

“Yes. So, did Deucalion take you to where he was staying?”

“Yes – he let me see Scott – he looked _awful_ – and the way they treated him – “

“I need as much information from you as possible. Please.”

* * *

”I don’t like him being in there with Stilinski,” Jackson growled, pacing up and down the bedroom. Derek watched him from his position reclining on the bed, letting him work out his anger. 

“You know Peter and Chris are with him – they won’t let anything happen to him,” Derek finally replied.

“Yeah but – “

“I know – Stiles is your Master and as such, you have the right to protect him,” Derek said, climbing off the bed and stopping Jackson in his tracks. “Another man might be jealous of how possessive you are of Stilinski.”

Jackson threw himself into Derek’s arms, his arms around his throat. 

“But you know better. You know how I feel about you and that what I feel for Stiles is – different.”

“I do. I know that Stiles doesn’t know about that spot behind your left ear – “ matching action to words, Derek pressed a gentle kiss to the spot, nipping at it before speaking again. “ – that acts as an instant turn on button. Stiles doesn’t know that you like it when I do this – “ he picked Jackson up and threw him onto the bed, following him down and grabbing his wrists, pinning him down. “ – or that you like it when you can feel my entire weight anchoring you to **our** bed.”

“You’re right – he doesn’t know any of that,” Jackson replied a little breathlessly, his eyes flickering between yellow and their human blue. “And he never will.”

“Exactly.” Sliding his hands down Jackson’s arms, Derek sat up so that he could stroke down his shoulders, moving to his chest and caressing his torso. “I don’t mind being a distraction if that’s what you need,” he offered.

“You’re _more_ than a distraction, Derek,” Jackson replied, his arms moving from above his head so that he could grip Derek’s hips. “You’re – everything.”

“Just as it should be,” Derek said, leaning down and kissing Jackson deeply.

* * *

”What are we going to do about him?” Christopher said and Peter turned to look at Ennis. He was hanging in his shackles, apparently unconscious. Stiles was removing the bamboo slivers from his hands and dropping them into a mountain ash solution – he was meticulous with his tools and insisted on taking care of them himself. 

“We can’t leave him alive,” Peter said, watching Stiles’ reaction carefully as the man walked over to them. 

“I agree,” Stiles said, nodding as he wiped his hands. “But I don’t want to be an alpha and neither do you.”

They both turned to Christopher who looked resigned. 

“I guess that leaves it to me,” he said, rubbing his hands over his face. “I’ve never done anything like this in such circumstances. It’s one thing to hunt something and kill in the heat of a fight – it’s something else entirely to just coldly – “

“Think of it this way, Christopher. If we let him go, he’ll return to Deucalion and he will hold a grudge. He will want revenge on Stiles for what he did to him, how he broke him down. He wants to eradicate the Hales from existence simply because he wants the territory – not to look after the people of Beacon Hills, but because he is part of a greedy, opportunistic bunch of werewolves with a sense of entitlement,” Peter stated calmly, knowing that Chris needed to choose for himself. The first time Peter had killed in defence of the Pack in cold blood, it had taken some time for him to forgive himself – taking a life was never something to be done lightly. “And if that doesn’t help you, think of the things he just said. He killed his entire pack for power – used them like they were batteries instead of comrades, family – is that really the kind of person, the kind of supernatural threat that you want to let loose in Beacon Hills?”

Peter watched as Chris set his shoulders, firming his resolve and making his decision. With a nod at both Peter and Stiles, Chris moved towards Ennis. He reached towards Ennis’s neck, screaming as the Alpha suddenly lurched forward and sank his fangs into Chris’s hand. Before Peter could move forward, Chris had wrenched Ennis’s head to the side, the crack of his neck loud in the cell. Chris staggered backwards immediately afterwards, cradling his hand to his chest, staring at Stiles and Peter in shock. 

Stiles grabbed Chris and pulled him to the chair, pushing him down and examining his hand. Knowing he was taken care of, Peter stepped towards Ennis’s body, hatred flaming through him at what the other werewolf had done. Without thinking, he grabbed one of Stiles’ guns from the table and shot Ennis in the head, pulling the trigger over and over again until there was just clicking sounds and there was nothing left of the Alpha’s head. 

“We need to get him upstairs,” Stiles said and Peter turned from the body.

“What?” He felt discombobulated, his brain whirling with the potential consequences of what Ennis had done. 

“Upstairs. We’ll make him comfortable in one of the main pack rooms – then we’ll have to wait.”

“I don’t – “

“Peter – focus! We don’t know if Chris will turn or – or if he won’t accept the bite. We need to get him upstairs and make him comfortable, then check in with everyone.” Peter realised Stiles was on the verge of panicking and that he needed to get a grip. They had talked about Chris taking the bite, but it wasn’t something they had wanted to rush into. Chris was happy as a human – used his hunter contacts to their advantage – and was no less a member of the pack because he hadn’t been bitten by Talia. They all knew the risks he took every time they went out on a hunt – he had a living will and had agreed to be bitten as a last resort. But somehow, they hadn’t thought about this. 

“Of course, sweetheart. You get the door – I’ll carry him,” Peter said, pulling a calm exterior over his fear. 

“I’m not dead and I’m fully capable of walking myself,” Christopher complained, accepting Peter’s assistance to his feet. The rag that Stiles had wrapped around his hand obscured the bite and apart from how pale and unsteady he was on his feet, there was nothing to show that Christopher had been bitten. “I swear, the universe is determined to cock-block us,” Peter said, aiming for a lightly amused tone of voice as he guided Christopher through the hallway.

“Yeah, well – how do you know I didn’t plan this so the three of us could get up to all kinds of werewolf hi-jinks?” Christopher said, leaning more heavily on Peter with each step.

“We’re going to have to reinforce the bed,” Peter replied, seeing that Stiles was relaxing slightly as they continued upstairs. They went into one of the spare bedrooms and Peter helped Christopher onto the bed whilst Stiles went into the bathroom for the medical kit that was in each of the rooms in case of emergency. With Stiles out of the room, Peter asked, “How are you feeling?”

“Like someone took a chunk out of my hand,” Christopher admitted, lifting his hand and allowing Peter to unravel the make-shift bandage that Stiles had created. The bite was bleeding sluggishly, teeth-marks clearly defined. “Does this make me an alpha?” 

“I don’t know. It’s rare for someone to kill their alpha just after being bitten,” Peter admitted, not having considered that aspect of things. 

“Well that would suck,” Christopher said, wincing when Peter manipulated his fingers to ensure that none of the tendons had been severed. “I don’t particularly want to be an alpha – all that responsibility wouldn’t suit me. I’m more of a Beta or enforcer than a leader.”

“Don’t worry, Christopher – we won’t let it go to your head,” Peter replied, turning as Stiles came out of the bathroom. He could see that the younger man had been crying, could scent the fear coming from him, but Stiles came forward with the medical kit and knelt by the bed.

“Let’s get this dressed and then maybe you should get some sleep. I don’t remember much about turning, but I do remember being really tired for a few days afterwards,” Stiles said evenly.

“If I start to reject the bite – “

“You won’t,” Stiles insisted, shaking his head as he cleaned the wound and re-bandaged it.

“But if I do – “

“You **won’t**!” Stiles shouted, looking into Christopher’s eyes. “We’re not losing you when I’ve just managed to get Peter’s head out of his ass. Now shut the hell up so I can get you out of those clothes and into bed.”

Christopher nodded, stroking Stiles’ cheek gently with his uninjured hand before allowing the other man to begin divesting him of his clothes.

“I’ll go and alert Talia,” Peter said, stroking his hand down the back of Stiles’ neck. 

“Okay.” Peter stepped out of the room, leaning back against the door and closing his eyes. He needed time to get the fear that was racing through him under control – then he could go and speak to his alpha. He wasn’t prepared to lose Christopher – he couldn’t imagine his life without him – and no matter what, he would find a way to save him if he began to reject the bite.

* * *


	7. Special Delivery

“He’s not rejecting the bite,” Talia said, taking the offered seat next to the bed. Peter nodded at his sister’s words, a wave of relief crashing over him. When Christopher hadn’t begun spewing black goo, he had thought things were going alright. But then Christopher showed no other signs of turning – he had a temperature but hadn’t regained consciousness since they put him into bed, lying still as a corpse. Peter had been forced to send Stiles out of the room when his agitated pacing had become too much.

“But he’s not turning like a wolf,” Peter stated and Talia’s eyes flew to his. 

“If he’s not a wolf – “

“He’s not a kanima. Jackson came in – he didn’t sense anything,” Peter replied, knowing where Talia’s mind had gone. “I’ve tried pulling up the records on the Argents to see if there were any supernaturals in their family tree at all, but I’ve had no success.”

“So we wait,” Talia said.

“Yes. Anything from Melissa?”

“Yes – she was quite forthcoming actually. I think the shock of me still being alive, the guilt she was feeling, our willingness to still help Scott – all coalesced into wanting to give us as much information as possible,” Talia replied. “I gave the information to Isaac – I’m assuming he’s who you’re going to send with Stiles.”

“Send with Stiles where?” Peter asked confused.

“Stiles said – when he came down earlier, he said he had an errand to run. I assumed you had sent him out,” Talia said.

“I did – he needed something to do. Stiles doesn’t do well with inaction,” Peter replied. “But I didn’t send him anywhere, and certainly nowhere that he would need Isaac with him. Did he say what this errand was?”

“Taking out the trash,” Talia replied. She leaned over and placed her hand onto Chris’s forehead, noting the temperature. “He’s getting cooler.”

“Is that bad?” 

“No. I wouldn’t be here if I thought something dangerous was going to happen. I think we just need to wait and see what he turns into,” Talia said, turning to face her brother. “Do you think he’ll adjust? To being a supe I mean?”

“I think he will. We talked about it – obviously the old hunter regulations were if you were bitten and were in danger of turning, you took the honourable way out. Christopher knows what I think of all of that nonsense – and agrees. We just assumed that if it happened, you would be the one biting him.”

“But instead it was Ennis. At least we don’t have to worry about his alpha calling him out,” Talia said and Peter nodded.

“True – but does that mean Christopher is an alpha in his own right? He killed Ennis almost immediately, possibly at the same time as the bite. Does that mean he’ll be an alpha? Or – “

“I don’t know. I wouldn’t have thought the bite would have had time to take if it happened that quickly – in which case, his alpha spark won’t have gone to Chris. At least, I don’t think so.”

“Jesus, I hate all of this waiting,” Peter snapped, turning away from his sister’s acute look.

“You never did have any patience,” a tired voice uttered from the bed and Peter swung back around, racing to the bed and throwing himself down next to Christopher. 

“Then you should know better than to test my patience, my darling,” Peter said, stroking Christopher’s face. “Now are you going to open those gorgeous eyes of yours or do you plan on playing possum a little longer to see what I reveal to my sister?”

“No – I know all of the things that matter,” Christopher replied, pressing his cheek into Peter’s hand. “Where’s Stiles?”

“He was getting annoying so I kicked him out for a while. Did you want me to call him?”

“Don’t you think we should try to figure out what I am first?”

* * *

“Why exactly are we here?” Isaac asked, looking towards the warehouse. 

“I want to see my gift being delivered,” Stiles replied with a dark grin, eyes glowing.

“Is Peter gonna kick my ass for agreeing to this?” Isaac queried and Stiles shook his head.

“No – well, I’ll make sure you get a head-start at least!”

“Thanks! Wait – the Couriers have arrived!” The two sat and watched in silence as the Couriers reached the warehouse door. In the small recess, they arranged the body neatly, placing the remains of the head in its small package next to the body. There wasn’t a lot known about the Couriers – just that you called the number given, said how many bodies and where you wanted them to go – and they made it happen. No matter how many times Stiles had tried to catch them out, he had failed. 

“Ready with the camera?” Stiles asked and Isaac nodded, making sure the long-distance lens was focused on the door.

“Peter didn’t rip his head off,” Isaac said casually and he felt Stiles stiffen. 

“No – I got a bit frustrated with waiting on Chris,” Stiles admitted and Isaac put his hand onto his packmate's arm comfortingly. They were all anxious to find out what was happening to Chris but Isaac knew it must be excruciating for Stiles. “Door’s opening.”

“That’s Scott,” Stiles breathed as the two of them watched a dark-haired young man begin to pull the body inside. 

“And Theo,” Isaac noted.

“Does Scott look under duress?”

“No – but that doesn’t mean – “

“I know – it’s just, the way Melissa described it to Talia, he was kept in a cage, terrified and alone. That doesn’t look like someone who’s suffering,” Stiles said his voice hardening.

“Stiles – don’t jump to conclusions,” Isaac cautioned him although he could well understand Stiles’ rage. His lover was lying unconscious, changing into who knew what, whilst the person that this whole thing had begun over seemed well and was chatting to Theo as they pulled the packages inside. 

“Did you see anyone else?”

“The camera picked up four other heat-forms. Those must be the twins, Deucalion and Kali,” Isaac said, closing down the camera once the door had closed.

“So Ennis told us the truth about who all was there,” Stiles said.

“No surprise there – when you pull out your little bamboo friends, very few people lie to you Stiles,” Isaac said, packing up their equipment efficiently.

“Point,” Stiles replied, getting to his feet. “Let’s get back to the Den – we need to figure out our next move.”

“And check on Chris,” Isaac said. 

“Can you feel that?” Stiles rubbed his chest, frowning.

“Feel what?”

“Well that answers that question,” Stiles said, still frowning. “It’s in my chest – like, a heat or glow or something. I can’t describe it properly.”

“Like a pack-link?”

“I don’t know – I feel you guys differently to this. It’s – intense but not painful. Not unpleasant.”

“Yeah – let’s get back to the den,” Isaac said, hope blossoming. If Stiles didn’t want to acknowledge that it felt like a mate-bond forming, Isaac wasn’t going to mess with him. Talia had made sure they all knew what it felt like – born or bitten, she wanted them fully informed. And it sounded to Isaac like Chris had woken up.

* * *

”Theo – who – “

“It smells like Ennis,” Theo replied to Scott, tugging the body over the threshold whilst keeping track of their surroundings. He was surprised that the Hales used the Couriers – that struck him as something Deucalion should have shared. Only trusted Supernaturals with a significant body-count even knew about the Couriers, and Deucalion had made the Hales out to be too goody-goody to be involved in something like that. 

“Why are there two parts – oh my God, are you saying that – “

“Just help me get it inside and we can talk about it there,” Theo said, the hair on the back of his neck rising. He felt like he was being watched but he couldn’t pinpoint from which direction and it made him feel vulnerable. “I did try to tell you that your friend Stiles wasn’t the good guy you made him out to be,” he continued, reaching and grabbing the smaller round package and slamming the door.

“You’re saying _Stiles_ did this?”

“Can’t you smell him?” Scott sniffed cautiously, obviously confused and unable to tell anything from the two packages. Theo sighed internally – as a wolf, Scott was a complete and utter failure. He didn’t listen to his senses, didn’t seem to have a clue what an awesome weapon he had been handed on a plate – instead, he flinched at the slightest sound, was visibly terrified of Kali and Deucalion, and stuck to Theo like a shadow. It was irritating but Theo knew he had to hide how he felt – Scott might still prove to be useful. “His scent is all over this. Poor Ennis must have really suffered under his hands.”

Once they had dragged the packages into the main room, Theo moved back and stood with his back to the wall. Deucalion directed the twins to unwrap the body, and Theo watched them closely to see how they were reacting. Aiden was stoic, but Ethan was visibly horrified and Theo knew he would have to keep an eye on the man – he was pulling away from the Pack, seeming to be questioning things a lot more. That – plus the death of Ennis – could be the in that Theo needed to become a fully-fledged member of the Alpha Pack. He just needed to be sure that Aiden wouldn’t blame him for his brother’s inevitable demise.

“Your Stiles has sent quite the message,” Kali said, sounding almost admiring.

“I had heard that he was adept in torture. I had not expected it to be Ennis that provided the proof,” Deucalion said. “Do you see that I wasn’t lying now, Scott? This is clear evidence of what your former friend is capable of.”

“You don’t know that Stiles did this!” Scott protested.

“Your senses are young and that is why you cannot tell for yourself. But trust me – the scent of your friend is all over this,” Deucalion said calmly and Theo watched Scott deflate under the certainty in the older werewolf’s voice. “I am truly sorry, Scott. This message they have sent – it makes it very clear to me that your mother will not have survived whatever happened. If they could do this to a strong wolf like Ennis – I can only imagine what they did to the fragile human that was your mother.”

“Stiles wouldn’t have – he couldn’t – “ Scott’s protestations were weak and it was evident he was fighting back tears. 

“Oh I think he could – if he felt that she represented a threat to his Pack, he would do whatever he needed to do. We can only hope she didn’t suffer too much,” Deucalion replied. Theo watched as Scott appeared to swallow Deucalion’s words without question and he wondered briefly if the boy was clever enough to be playing Duke at his own game. Did he truly accept Deucalion’s version of events? Theo had no idea if Melissa was still alive – frankly, he didn’t care – but what the Hales had done to Ennis was perfectly acceptable. He had trespassed onto their territory and was part of an invading force – did Scott really think they were just going to ask him to leave nicely? “It would appear that unfortunately your friend does not care to try a peaceful discussion – we should prepare.”

“Prepare?” Scott asked.

“Yes. We need to prepare for war – and we are a much smaller force so our methods will need to be less full-frontal and slightly sneakier. We’ll start with the girls,” Deucalion said to Kali who nodded, grinning. Theo was the only one to see Ethan wince at Deucalion’s words and take an unconscious step backwards. 

Yes, Ethan would have to go.

* * *

”Why did no one call me to tell me he’d woken up?” Stiles shouted as he raced through the front door and headed immediately to the stairs. 

“Er – because you told them you needed radio silence for what you were doing?” Boyd said, a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

“Oh yeah – sorry!” Stiles replied, looking slightly abashed.

“He’s only just woken. Talia and Peter are with him,” Boyd replied calmly.

“Do we know – “

“You now know what we know! Get a move on so we can find out – Erica’s been placing bets ever since we realised he wasn’t rejecting the bite!” Stiles grinned then ran up the stairs and headed towards the bedroom where he had left Peter and Chris. Pushing open the door, he took in the fact that Peter and Talia were calmly seated next to the bed, but he couldn’t see Chris. 

“What is – “

“I can’t wait to hear about the little errand you’ve been on, my sweet,” Peter said and Stiles blushed, knowing he should have let Peter know what he was doing. 

“Christopher – “ The bathroom door opened and Chris came out, a towel wrapped around his waist, another being used to dry his hair. Before he could ask anything, Chris flashed his eyes at him – a deep, eerie green that Stiles had never seen before in his life.

* * *


	8. Chapter 8

Peter spotted what was about to happen about ten seconds too late. Stiles’ eyes flashed blue, he growled and threw himself at Chris, knocking him to the ground. 

“Get help!” he shouted at Talia as he dived towards the two men currently wrestling on the ground. He was aware of Talia leaving the room as he tried to grapple Stiles away from Chris. He threw him away as far as he could, turning back to ward off Chris who was instantly on the attack. Stiles landed on his back and he struggled between the two of them as they tried desperately to get to each other. He managed to throw Stiles off him, falling to the ground with Christopher beneath him in the process. Christopher let out an inhuman yowl, then his form shifted beneath Peter, bones cracking and creaking as he went through his first change. 

The sleek form of a black panther was beneath him, eyes a startling green, and even in his new form he could see the confusion Christopher was feeling. Before he could do anything to try to reassure him, communicate with him, Stiles was back, lips curled back, eyes flaring blue, growling deep in his chest. 

Peter got to his feet and went for Stiles, pushing him to the corner and pinning him in place. 

“Calm the fuck down!” A barking sound came from behind him and he turned his head to see that Christopher had got unsteadily to his feet and was swaying in the middle of the room. “It’s Christopher – you _know_ its Christopher so show some god-damn control!”

The door burst open, Boyd and Derek racing into the room and taking in the scene quickly. Derek went to Christopher, holding out his hand to show he meant no harm, whilst Boyd came to help Peter contain Stiles who was struggling with his grasp.

“STAND DOWN!” The Alpha command hit Christopher the hardest, as he threw himself to the ground whimpering. Stiles snapped back to himself, the colour fading from his eyes as he stopped struggling, and for a moment there was complete silence. Talia stood in the doorway, her eyes still glowing ruby red as she cradled her bump. “Right – now that’s over with and you two have shown each other which one of you has the bigger dick, can we start to have some normality. Now – someone get me a chair and then we can get this shit cleaned up and figure out how to get Chris to turn human again. You three are such a pain in my ass!”

* * *

Ethan shouldered the heavy bag, looking over his shoulder at his sleeping brother. It was obvious to him that Aiden wasn’t going to leave the Alpha Pack – his brother might be scared of what Deucalion and Kali had planned, but he was more scared of being without them. Or worse, them coming after him. He had never spent any significant time away from Aiden and was slightly terrified – what if without his brother, his Alpha powers left him? Would he even survive as an omega? 

His fear of Deucalion and Kali was stronger than his fear of becoming an omega. They were unhinged, the power of being in an Alpha pack having gone to their head. They hadn’t even mourned the loss of Ennis, merely using it as a means of convincing Scott that Stiles and the Hales could not be trusted. Ethan dreaded to think what they had planned next – he knew it revolved around capturing Laura and Cora Hale, but beyond that, he wasn’t sure. 

He didn’t want to be there to find out.

He made his way quietly out of the warehouse, staring up into the night sky as he tried to think about what he could do next. He hadn’t decided whether or not he was going to the Hales to appeal to them for clemency and sanctuary – betraying Aiden that much seemed a step too far. But they would be far safer the better the option – from what he could tell, they had only done what any other Pack would have done to Ennis at such a trespass. All of his information about the Hales said they were harsh but fair, running with two Left Hands and a Hunter as their pack protectors. 

He ran quietly in the direction of the preserve, his heart heavy as he left his brother behind. Going to the Hales made the most sense – perhaps he could use the information he had about the Alpha Pack as a means of negotiation, although judging by the state of Ennis the Hales probably already knew everything about them. A blow to the head took him completely by surprise and he found himself on the ground, staring up at a shadowed figure.

“I knew you were going to do a runner,” Theo said, stepping into the moonlight so that Ethan could see him clearly. “I’ve been watching and waiting to see when you would get the balls to do something. Aiden – too much of a coward to see that his place is shaky, but you? You could clearly see which way things were going.”

“You waste of space!” Ethan spat out, throwing his bag to one side and climbing to his feet. 

“At least I’m not a traitorous waste of space,” Theo replied, his eyes beginning to glow as his fangs grew. “What do you think Deucalion will do to you once he realises you were deserting us?”

“Like you have any plans to try to take me back to Deucalion! I’ve been watching you too, Theo,” Ethan replied, circling the other were and rolling his shoulders to loosen his muscles.”You’re a snake who works his way into places for his own gain – you have no loyalty, nothing about you other than a need to be better than others!”

“Nothing wrong with that,” Theo replied, “it must be the coyote in me!” As he spoke, he lunged at Ethan, slicing across his face with his claws even as he followed through with a kick to Ethan’s sternum. Aware that he was fighting for his life, Ethan swiped at the blood that had got into his eyes and ran at Theo, trying to force him to the ground. He was hampered by the fact that he was more used to fighting with his brother – they covered each other’s weak spots, teamed up on opponents and worked together – fighting solo was new to him. They wrestled on the ground, neither able to gain the upper hand, despite drawing blood using claws and fangs.

Theo flipped himself easily to his feet, backhanding Ethan as he tried to do the same. He slammed into the wall of the nearest building, the wind knocked out of him. Before he could gather his wits, Theo was on him, clawed hands around his throat as he looked him in the eye.

“I promise I’ll tell your brother something heroic – that you died trying to do the right thing!” 

“You – “ The words were caught in his throat as Theo tightened his grip. Grabbing at his wrists, Ethan tried fruitlessly to get the other man’s hands from around his neck. Pain sliced through him as he felt Theo begin to close his grip, cutting off his oxygen, digging into his throat until he could feel the blood beginning to flow down his neck.

“Or maybe I’ll do the same thing to him that I’m doing to him. After all, if a Beta can give you a little boost of power, just imagine how much stronger I’m going to be after killing an alpha – even if it’s a weak-ass alpha like you!” 

Ethan gurgled helplessly, his head feeling light, the strength beginning to seep out of him as Theo tightened his grip more and more. 

“As an alpha, you were useless – as a battery, you ain’t so bad!” Sharp claws digging into his neck, tearing at his throat and Ethan realised he wasn’t going to survive this. Theo’s nasty smirk was the last thing he saw.

* * *

”I don’t know what came over me!” Stiles said, curled up in the armchair with Peter. He kept looking over at Christopher guiltily, his scent sour with the dark emotions.

“You felt challenged – it’s normal,” Peter replied, running his hand up and down Stiles’ back soothingly.

“I never felt like this with you!” Stiles replied.

“That’s because you knew we were Pack. And remember, you were young. You’ve never really been in this position before,” Peter tried to reassure him. Christopher was lying curled up in the corner of the room, bright green eyes watching everyone around him warily. He seemed incredibly docile – once Stiles had stopped attacking him, he had allowed Derek to calm him down very quickly. He had submitted to Talia immediately when she approached him, offering his neck easily and accepting the stroke of her hand happily. The Pack bond was strong, adding to the weight in Talia’s chest that was always there. 

“Then why didn’t _you_ attack him?”

“To be fair, he didn’t feel the need to flash his eyes at me,” Peter replied and Talia nodded her agreement. “Also, I **have** had a little more experience than you have, my love. It should have occurred to me that you would react that way to an alien supernatural in your den – it was a completely understandable, instinctual response.”

Stiles nodded, but Talia could see that he was a long way from forgiving himself. 

“So, what do we do now? I mean – what is he? A jaguar? Panther?”

“I think he’s a panther – although some of his markings make me wonder,” Peter replied, looking over at Christopher. “And what’s next is that we get him to turn human again and help to teach him control over his shift.”

“Can you imagine what Gerard would have had to say about there being supernaturals in his lineage somewhere? There’s no other explanation for Christopher turning like this,” Stiles said.

“Yes, well – the less said about Chris’s former family, the better,” Talia said, yawning widely.

“You should get to bed – it’s been an eventful few days and I imagine things are not going to calm down.” Peter examined his sister with a critical eye and Talia wished that she wasn’t feeling quite so rumpled and tired. It was hard to present herself as a competent, hardass Alpha when she couldn’t stop yawning.

“I would actually like to hear where Stiles went,” Talia responded, hoping to shift Peter’s attention away from her, and Stiles flushed a deep red.

“I _might_ have let my temper get the better of me,” Stiles finally admitted. “I sent Deucalion a message.”

“A message?”

“In the form of Ennis’s body via the Couriers,” Stiles said and Peter laughed, even as Talia managed to hide her incredulity. Sometimes, Stiles still managed to shock her with his ruthless attitude. “Why do you find that funny?”

“Because sometimes it’s perfectly obvious that you have spent _far_ too much time in my company!” Peter said. 

“Fair point,” Talia said around another yawn. “Did you gather any other intel?”

“I’m not 100% sure that Scott is being held against his will,” Stiles admitted, resting his head on Peter’s shoulder. “We saw him and Theo take in Ennis’s body, and he didn’t appear to be being coerced.”

“That doesn’t mean he isn’t there against his will. Deucalion has a way of working his way into your weak spots – he may have convinced Scott of anything in the time he’s had him,” Talia said. 

“True. But I don’t think we can rely on him as a potential ally on the inside,” Stiles replied, attempting to smother his yawn in Peter’s neck. 

“Okay – I think it’s time that we **all** tried to get some sleep. We’ll be better able to deal with Christopher tomorrow morning after some rest. And I doubt Deucalion will be making a move this quickly. Your message will have meant that he has to allow for having one less body on his side, and we are on our home turf,” Peter said firmly, patting Stiles on the thigh to get him to stand up. 

“Okay, sounds like a plan to me,” Talia said, holding out her hands. Derek stepped forward and helped his mother to her feet, guiding her towards the door. “First thing tomorrow, yes?”

“Absolutely,” Peter replied before turning to Christopher. “So, Stiles – any suggestions as to how we get him to follow us to bed?”

* * *


	9. Waiting....

Three days. 

Or more importantly, three nights. 

Nights where Aiden felt like he was drowning, the taste of blood strong in his mouth, the faint echo of excruciating pain in his throat enough to have him clawing himself awake, fighting off an unseen foe. 

Throwing the sheets off his body, he strode over to the window, staring blindly out at the moon. 

He rubbed at his chest, trying to alleviate the empty ache there – three days and he hadn’t heard a word from Ethan. He couldn’t think of a single day where they hadn’t been together or at least spoken to each other.

Something was very wrong.

* * *

Three days. 

Or more importantly, three nights. 

Three nights of sleeping with a giant cat at the foot of his bed, whilst one of the men he loved made life a living hell by writhing against him in his sleep. He was an evil man, but Peter was pretty sure he had never done anything that deserved this.

Stiles rolled over next to him, pressing his face into the curve of Peter’s neck, whilst throwing one leg over his body. Like clockwork, the man started moaning quietly as he began to rub his body against Peter’s. Fast asleep and driving Peter completely insane – that was a talent. 

Three days of everything being quiet concerning Deucalion and the Alpha Pack. Three days of vigilance, no pack members being allowed to go anywhere alone, reporting their destinations, and checking in regularly.

Three days of trying to figure out how to get Christopher to turn human again. He didn’t appear to be trapped so much as unwilling to turn back. He was perfectly content padding along behind Peter and Stiles, curling up in a patch of sunlight in the study whilst they learned all that they could about Deucalion and his patterns. He completely accepted Talia as his Alpha, going so far as to lie at her feet protectively in the evenings. He recognised the Hales as his Pack and seemed to have reached a level of acceptance about Stiles – their little fight for dominance had sorted things out nicely.

In the meantime, Stiles was frothing at the mouth with the desire to dive straight in and eviscerate Deucalion and his pack, appearing to have lost the ability to think strategically – it was much more Derek’s style to forgo brains and go with the tried and tested (and invariably failing) fangs and claws route. When he was denied that opportunity, he railed and screamed at Peter although he invariably apologised afterwards. 

Peter knew what was going on. Stiles was feeling the same mating bond to Christopher that he was. But he didn’t recognise it for what it was, and with Christopher remaining in his animal form, they couldn’t talk about it. 

Not that Stiles seemed to want to talk. They climbed into bed together every night, doing nothing more than holding each other as Christopher made himself comfortable at the foot of the bed. If Peter tried to talk about anything, Stiles would immediately begin a ramble about something Derek and Jackson had said, completely over-riding anything Peter might have to say. It was incredibly frustrating, however understandable. 

Realising that Stiles was ramping up, Peter decided that he couldn’t take it – not tonight. He only had so much willpower and everything inside of him wanted to roll Stiles over and fuck him until he couldn’t walk. 

Sliding out of the bed and with no remorse whatsoever, manoeuvring the sleeping cat so that it was within reaching distance (let Christopher deal with horny Stiles), Peter walked silently out of the bedroom and made his way through the house. In the kitchen, he found Talia having a cup of hot milk, her gaze turned towards the moon gleaming through the window.

“Can’t sleep?” Talia turned and smiled at him, rubbing at her belly.

“Junior appears to be feeling the moon. I’m pretty sure this one is a born wolf as well judging by his reaction,” she replied, moving over to make room for him to sit next to her. “And you?”

“The moon appears to be affecting Stiles – he’s – _restless_ ,” Peter replied, taking the offered seat and putting his arm around his sister. 

“Restless, huh?” Talia’s smirk was a welcome sight, even if it was at his expense. 

“Shut up! I distinctly remember how exhausted certain husbands looked during phases of your pregnancy,” he teased back. “I’m thinking of going for a run.”

“Is that a good idea? Deucalion and the others are still out there,” Talia said, running her hand soothingly up and down his arm.

“It’s a risk I may have to take. We can’t maintain this limbo forever,” Peter said, thinking carefully. “I know the risks – and I also know that we can only keep your continued good health a secret for so long. Perhaps we need to move things along.”

“I don’t like the sound of you getting captured as a plan, Peter,” Talia said, frowning.

“I’ve been through worse than Deucalion and Kali can dream up,” Peter replied confidently.

“Don’t get cocky, Peter. And how exactly do I explain it to Stiles?”

“You’re his Alpha – “

“Uh huh!”

“And pregnant – he’ll take it out on the others. And it may be enough to make Christopher turn less furry. It would be nice to sit down with the two of them and have a conversation about our futures. Besides, you know as well as I do that we can’t keep everyone cooped up forever – we need to act,” Peter said decisively.

“Are you sure about this?”

“No, but I don’t have any other ideas. And Deucalion is proving to be more cautious than I had expected,” Peter admitted. “The longer he’s in Beacon Hills, the more likely things are to get bloody for innocents. He won’t be able to resist getting his revenge for Ennis for much longer, and as I said, you’re our ace in the hole which only works as long as they don’t know you’re alive.”

“Very well,” Talia said, leaning to kiss his cheek. “But I am going to tell Stiles that this was **all** your idea.”

“I would expect nothing less, sister-mine.” Rubbing his cheek against Talia’s hair, Peter inhaled deeply. Apart from a little tiredness, his sister seemed well and he tried not to imagine what could have happened if Melissa had achieved her aim. They could have lost the cub – they could have lost Talia. 

They needed to act and quickly. He wanted his sister to be able to enjoy the rest of her pregnancy and that wasn’t going to happen with the Alpha Pack in town. Peter got to his feet and shimmied out of his sleep pants, sliding easily into the change and the draw of the moon became much stronger.

“Trust you to make me get to my feet,” Talia grumbled good-naturedly as she walked over and opened the patio doors for him. “Good hunting, my Left Hand.” He rubbed his head against her hand before bounding out of the room and heading across the expanse of the back yard and into the Preserve.

Well travelled paths, the smells of his family and Pack surrounding him, the moon high in the sky, and Peter could feel himself relaxing for the first time in days. He stretched out his awareness, sensing sleeping animals as well as more active prey, but tonight he wasn’t hunting for them – he had his mind on bigger threats to his Pack. He felt her on the edge of his senses and headed in her direction, deliberately acting unaware. It was almost ridiculously easy to fall to the ground when she landed on top of him, holding back on his natural strength to allow her to bear him to the ground. Internally cataloguing her strengths and weaknesses, he couldn’t prevent himself from inwardly deriding the ridiculousness of her having sharpened claws on her feet – like that would be any _real_ defence if he wasn’t trying to be captured. 

He could have done without the hit to the head that knocked him unconscious though.

* * *

“It is ridiculous that we haven’t seen anything of the Hales in three days,” Deucalion complained and Theo rolled his eyes.

“Of course they’re in hiding – they have may have killed Ennis, but **we** killed their Alpha! They’re trying to adapt to the changes within their Pack, Duke – it’s no wonder none of them have been seen around.”

“But not even on the grounds? It’s ridiculous. No one wolf should have that much power – alpha or not.” Theo struggled not to spew out the words on his tongue – that Duke wanted to have _just_ that much control and influence over his Pack. 

“Kali is patrolling tonight – perhaps she’ll have something to report when she returns,” he said, turning as the door opened and Aiden strode purposefully into the room. “Everything alright?”

“I want to know what you did to my brother,” Aiden stated, coming to stand in front of Theo. 

“I don’t know what you mean,” Theo said, smirking.

“Don’t pull that bullshit on me – Ethan wouldn’t have run away, and I can smell him on you!”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Aiden,” Deucalion interjected. “Of course you can scent your brother on Theo – we are all pack-mates after all.”

“No, Duke, this is different and I’m not letting you brush this aside any longer,” Aiden raised his voice and Theo’s eyebrows rose. He had never seen the other alpha show such mettle – normally he was completely subservient to Deucalion and Kali. “Theo – what did you do?”

“What makes you think I had anything to do with it? Your brother decided to be a coward and run out on his pack – nothing to do with me! Perhaps we should be wondering if you’re going to follow in his footsteps?” The blow to his face was expected and Theo rolled with it, allowing himself to stagger slightly for effect. “Now, Aiden – “

“You utter bastard! I can **smell** his blood on you!” Aiden was completely enraged, his eyes glowing red, his claws emerging as he advanced on Theo.

“You leave Theo alone!” Scott came from nowhere, jumping onto Aiden’s back and grabbing his head, yanking it backwards so that he tumbled away from Theo. With an avid gaze, Theo watched as the two of them fought, keeping well out of the way. Scott was unpractised and clumsy, but Aiden was used to fighting in his merged form with his brother and it was adversely affecting his abilities. The two of them rolled around on the ground, barely landing any blows as they scrabbled.

“This is insane – stop this at once!” Deucalion shouted from the sidelines, his patience at an end. 

“He’s done something to Ethan – “

“Theo **told** me you would attack him – he said you and Ethan couldn’t be trusted – “

With the two of them distracted, Theo slipped in and jabbed Aiden in the back of the neck, using his small store of kanima venom to good effect.

“What did you – “ Aiden stuttered, turning to face Theo as he fell sideways off of Scott. Before he could finish speaking, Theo deliberately fell towards Aiden, pulling the paralysed body on top of his own so that it looked like Aiden was attacking him. 

“Help me, Scott!” Theo demanded, turning a fearful expression towards the impressionable young man. Scott acted immediately, getting to his feet and hauling Aiden off of Theo. Not used to his own strength, his grip on Aiden sent him crashing across the room and into the wall, an audible crack loud in the sudden silence. Theo could tell that Scott’s temper was aroused, and he goaded him into action. “Don’t let him get me!” he said quietly, pleased when Scott followed Aiden across the room. The time spent training with Scott, encouraging him to go for the kill as the norm, paid off as Scott gripped Aiden’s head and twisted until his neck snapped. 

Scott visibly shuddered as the flood of power raced through him, getting to his feet and staring down at his hands as if he couldn’t quite believe what he had done. He looked over at Deucalion and Theo, his eyes flashing ruby-red in his shocked face.

“Oh my God – “

Hiding his satisfaction, Theo got to his feet and looked over at the other man. “Well, Scott – it looks like you’re an alpha now!”

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all of your kind words and wishes for my health. I'm still struggling with vertigo (which is a complete and utter bitch), and the headaches aren't gone, but I managed to sit up this morning at 5 am and cranked this out! 
> 
> Hopefully, I'll be able to finish this soon as I absolutely hate keeping you guys waiting - especially if you've taken a chance on my WiP because I know what a risk that can be!
> 
> I hope you guys are doing well going into the final week of February. 
> 
> Stay safe, stay well and stay kind  
> Skar  
> x


	10. Long Buried Guilt

He needed to remember to tell Stiles what a little bitch his former best friend was. Strapped to a chain-link fence, Peter considered whether he had made the best move in allowing himself to be captured. He had awoken tied to the fence and with a prime view as Kali and Deucalion got into a massive bitch-fest about the death of the twins, Aiden and Ethan. 

Apparently, Theo had caught Ethan deserting the fold and despatched him, just _happening_ to keep his new Alpha powers a secret and not informing the rest of the group of Ethan’s demise. 

Aiden – not being quite as thick as Peter would have imagined – had finally realised that his twin was not returning and had attacked Theo. Rookie mistake right there. With a weasel – or rather, coyote – like Theo, attacking from the front was a huge mistake. Theo had obviously primed McCall to expect Aiden’s attack, phrasing it as a sign of his defection, and McCall had pulled the trigger on that loaded gun, just like the stooge Theo had trained him to be. Kali had returned with Peter’s unconscious body in time to see the aftermath of the debacle.

“He was _never_ meant to be an alpha!” Kali hissed at Deucalion, gesturing towards where McCall was in the process of cleaning up where he had vomited after murdering Aiden. 

“I know, but we need to roll with the punches. Much like you did, in bringing Mr Hale here to us,” Deucalion replied.

“And how the hell is _Theo_ an alpha now? What the fuck happened while I was out?” Kali continued, completely enraged. 

“That is a story that I look forward to hearing from our Mr Raeken. Allegedly, Ethan was leaving our little group and Theo stopped him. Unfortunately, there are no witnesses so we only have his word for it.”

“But Duke – “

“Enough, Kali! I believe Mr Hale has returned to consciousness and he does not need to know the inner workings of our pack. Please oversee the clean up of the body while I go to welcome our guest.”

* * *

”He did what?” Talia was impressed with the fact that Stiles managed to keep his voice down. His rage was evident, but his tone of voice was calm and level.

“Peter decided in his infinite wisdom that we needed to speed things along. So he went out with the intent of being captured. Knowing Peter as we all do, obviously he achieved his aim,” Talia replied, sipping her tea whilst keeping an eye on Stiles. He began pacing around the kitchen, Christopher trailing him back and forth in his panther form. She was beginning to get slightly worried over Chris’s insistence on remaining in that form – she didn’t want him to forget what it was to be human. However, there were slightly more pressing matters.

“So, what, we’re meant to just sit back and wait for him to escape?” Derek said from across the dining table, looking between Talia and Stiles in confusion.

“He didn’t get that far in his planning,” Talia admitted, wincing internally at the look of utter rage that crossed Stiles' face.

“He didn’t get that far in his planning,” Stiles repeated quietly, rubbing his hands across Chris’s ears as he moved back and forth. 

“I believe Peter was concerned that the Alpha Pack might discover that their plan with regard to me had failed sooner rather than later and didn’t want to lose the advantage,” Talia expanded.

“That makes senses – in fact, that’s the first thing that’s made sense this morning,” Jackson said drily, reaching for another piece of toast.

“It does, yeah,” Stiles admitted. “But still. I am so gonna hand him his ass for this!” 

“So, we wait? Or – ?” Derek asked again.

“We know from Melissa that as well as Ennis, there was Deucalion, Kali, the twins, Theo and Scott,” Stiles recounted.

“But we got rid of Ennis,” Derek said, listening intently as Stiles moved into cool planning mode.

“Yes – which might make Deucalion a little bit testy. Which I would imagine Peter also didn’t take into account with his planning,” Stiles said.

“Right.”

“Is Theo an alpha?”

“He wasn’t – not the last time we encountered him anyway,” Talia said.

“Four alphas.” Derek, Jackson and Stiles shared a look.

“Don’t even think about trying to exclude me from this,” Talia said clearly.

“Mom – “

“Alpha Talia – “

“Four alphas and a potentially injured Peter. And Scott. We have no idea which side he’s on – from what Melissa said, he’s well on his way to experiencing some major Stockholm Syndrome. We can’t rely on him being with us if we go in there,” Stiles said, taking a seat at the table. 

“We have Laura, Cora, Isaac, me and Derek, you and Chris,” Jackson said, wiping his mouth and pouring himself a mug of coffee. Talia marvelled at his ability to continue eating while they were discussing going into battle.

“I am more than capable – “

“Boyd and Erica could be in reserve,” Derek said.

“That would make sense. Can you perform the spell while you’re all – upset?” Jackson asked. Talia knew they were talking about the spell that enabled any alpha powers won by her pack members to go to her, ensuring that there was no more than one alpha in the pack and bolstering her strength.

“Yeah, yeah – I mean, I can calm down enough to do it,” Stiles confirmed. His ability to work certain spells along with working with mountain ash was just a couple of the things that made him special. Thinking better on his feet, Stiles was back to pacing.

“If you’re going to be bolstering my power anyway – “ Talia tried to interject.

“No!” Stiles’ voice was forceful and she stared at him, shocked at the tone he was taking. She could see that he was struggling – Peter’s decision looked more and more foolhardy the more time went by – but Stiles had never spoken to her like that before. Derek looked stunned, but bared his fangs and stood up.

“Don’t talk to our Alpha like that,” he growled, brushing off Jackson’s restraining hand. “I know you’re stressed, Stiles, but I won’t have you disrespecting her like that.”

For a moment there was a tense stand-off and then Stiles forced himself to relax, turning to Talia and speaking formally. “Alpha – I apologise for my tone and for my attitude. No disrespect was meant and I hope you will understand when I explain. I’m not just speaking as joint Left Hand of the Pack – and I’m not just speaking as Peter’s mate.”

“Go ahead,” she said, nodding her permission for him to explain himself. 

“I’m not losing another parent. I’m sorry, Talia, but – “ Stiles struggled to articulate what he was feeling. “The loss of David hit the pack extremely hard. If something were to happen to you, to the new baby – I don’t think we would recover. And I know that I would not.”

“I see what you are saying, Stiles, but as the Alpha, it is my right to lead us into this battle,” Talia said.

“I understand.”

“And I have never led from the rear – I would never send you or any other member of the pack into a fight that I would not go into myself.”

“I know that too.”

“However, I do take your point about the state of the Pack. We have suffered losses and are only now getting back onto our feet. Which is, no doubt, part of what Deucalion was planning on,” she continued. “And I readily admit that I have felt more vulnerable with this pregnancy.”

“Please – “

“Very well. Stiles, take Jackson, Derek, Laura, Cora, Boyd and Isaac,” Talia said decisively. “Will you take Chris?”

They all turned to look at Chris who was in the process of filching some bacon from Derek’s unattended plate.

“I don’t think I would be able to leave him behind,” Stiles admitted, rubbing his chest in a gesture that had become more and more common since Chris was bitten. 

“Stiles – don’t you think it’s time that you admitted – “ Talia began. 

“That’s our cue to leave,” Derek said, grabbing Jackson by the hand and beginning to tug him out of the room. “We’ll speak to the others, get them ready.” Talia gave Stiles time to recover himself before trying again.

“Stiles – what you’re feeling is completely normal,” she said. Stiles sat down opposite her, toying with the cooling mug of coffee Jackson had left behind.

“Is it?”

“What has you so concerned?”

“I guess – I knew I loved them both. But to feel this – for both Christopher and Peter – it feels – “ Once again, he struggled to find the right words. “It’s too much.”

“Why would you say that?”

“Because I don’t deserve this – I don’t deserve any of it!” Stiles’ words exploded out of him and Talia held her tongue, allowing him to get it all out of his system. “I killed my parents! I was being a brat in the back of the car – arguing about something stupid and distracted my Dad – that’s why he didn’t see – “

“No, Stiles, no!” Rising from her seat, Talia moved around the table and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. “That was **never** your fault! I can’t believe you’ve held on to that for so long! Oh my sweet boy!” 

“But it’s true! If I hadn’t been arguing, if Dad had seen – “

“If your father had seen two giant wolves fighting in the middle of the highway, he would have – what? Calmly avoided them? Stepped out of the vehicle and potentially got himself bitten?” Taking his chin, Talia forced him to look up at her. “No, Stiles – what happened to your parents was tragic, but it wasn’t your fault. There was absolutely no way he could have been prepared for that.”

“But then Peter left and – I’m not even a proper wolf!”

“You are far more than we have ever had the right to hope for! What other pack has a Left Hand so young? Competent with magic and mountain ash? An accomplished interrogator? Someone who brought a kanima safely into our ranks? Stiles, you have achieved so much in your young life – “

“Jackson chose me – I didn’t have anything to do with – “

“You hush your mouth! I’m speaking now!” Taking the seat next to him, Talia grabbed both of his hands. “Peter loves you – has always loved you. And you are so very, very lucky to have fallen in love with Christopher too. The relationship between the three of you – it works because it was meant to be, Stiles. Don’t reject the mating bond because you are scared – or because you feel undeserving. I have failed as your Alpha because I have never sat you down and had this talk with you.”

“You’ve never failed me as an Alpha – “

“Oh I have – so many times! When Peter was isolating you from the pack, when you felt so alone, when you didn’t change the way the others did – Stiles, you have been such a boon to my life since the moment I met you, and I have failed if I haven’t got that into your thick skull by now!” Talia leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “You are a wolf, and a spark, and a beloved member of my Pack – from now until eternity. Do not ever doubt that. And do not let fear prevent you from grabbing happiness with both hands.”

Christopher muscled his way in between them, resting his head on Stiles’ thighs. 

“I think I might have an idea why Chris hasn’t changed back yet,” Talia said, wiping tears from her cheeks. 

“I don’t understand,” Stiles said, gripping her hand tightly with one hand whilst stroking Chris’s head.

“He accepts me as his alpha, but Stiles – he doesn’t feel accepted by you as his mate. Being in that form protects him from his feelings of rejection,” Talia said softly, seeing the understanding in Stiles’ eyes. “If you’re not ready, that’s okay – no one expects you to be prepared for everything, Stiles. Just make sure that when you go into battle to bring my brother back and end this threat to our territory that you go into it with a whole heart. Do you understand?”

Stiles nodded, and with one last kiss to his cheek, Talia got to her feet and left the room, leaving Stiles and Christopher alone.

* * *


	11. Phase One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Pack are going to rescue Peter and face what's left of the Alpha Pack.
> 
> * * *

The ritual to pass the power from any kill to the Pack Alpha calmed Stiles down. He stood with Talia, Derek, Jackson, Isaac, Laura, Cora, Boyd and Chris, watching as the smoke from the spell dissipated into the air. 

“Everyone know their places?” he asked, looking around at them all.

“We know what we have to do Stiles,” Jackson said, pressed against Derek’s side. 

“We get in – we free Peter as the first priority; only then do we even consider taking on any of the Alphas,” he continued.

“Stiles – “

“All the information we’ve gathered says that Deucalion and Kali are the ones to look out for – she’s vicious and allegedly uses wolfsbane on the claws on her feet although I’m not sure I believe that one.”

“Stiles – “

“And just because Deucalion is blind doesn’t mean you can discount him – he’s ruthless and _always_ goes for the kill – “

“STILES!”

“What?”

“We know, okay? We’re as prepared as we can be. You can trust us,” Jackson said.

“I do trust you. I just – I don’t want to lose anyone,” Stiles admitted and Laura took his hand, squeezing it gently. 

“Jordan says he’ll keep patrols away from the area tonight,” Laura said and Stiles nodded. 

“They’re going to be expecting us – they know there’s no way we’re going to allow them to keep Peter,” he said, reaching for Chris who appeared at his side. He was still in cat form but Stiles could feel his solid, reassuring presence in his chest and Stiles knew Talia had been correct in her thoughts. Once she had left the two of them alone, Stiles had got down onto the floor and simply lain with the panther, allowing his emotions free-reign. As a result, the link between him and Chris was solid and he knew that as soon as this fight was over, Chris would return to human form. “This Theo is an unknown – other than that he seems to be sneaky as fuck.”

“Yeah, I don’t have a great feeling about the guy,” Derek said laconically. 

“If he’s somehow managed to get alpha powers – or is using Scott to hide behind – “

“We take them all out if we can,” Cora said plainly. 

“And we bring Scott back here and deal with him and Melissa together,” Stiles finished.

“I’ve already spoken to a number of packs outside of Beacon Hills who might consider taking him. And although Melissa will have to face some punishment – “ Talia said.

“She damned well better!” Boyd interjected. Although it had been part of the plan to allow Melissa to make her move, it had not sat well with the beta that he had to stand back and allow his alpha to be attacked. He viewed Melissa with extreme prejudice, refusing to let Talia into her presence unless Boyd was there to check her out first.

“I’m sorry you were put into that position, Boyd, but you know I trust you with my life,” Talia said, stroking his arm to scent him and reassure him that she was fine.

“I know, Alpha,” Boyd replied, bowing his head respectfully.

“I’m calling shotgun on Derek’s Camaro!” Jackson said and Cora punched him in the arm. 

“I don’t want to be in the Jeep!”

“You can always cramp yourself up in the back of the passion-wagon,” Derek said, waggling his eyebrows and making his sister scowl.

“How come no-one’s calling shotgun on my car?” Isaac complained and Jackson laughed.

“That’s because you drive the most sensible, boring car in the whole wide world – there is _no_ fight for a place in your vehicle!”

“HEY!”

“There is nothing wrong with my Jeep!” Stiles protested before turning and hugging Talia tightly to him. “We’ll bring him home.”

“I know you will,” Talia replied, caressing his cheek before moving around each of the betas and marking them. “You all better get your asses home safely or I won’t tell you the sex of the baby!”

“Ah well, with the chance to win the betting pot on that one, I’m definitely getting back here first!” Laura said, kissing her mother and following Stiles to the front door. 

“You’re always back here first because you have to wash off any blood before it stains your clothes,” Cora taunted her sister as she followed her, and the group headed out of the house and into battle.

* * *

”It shouldn’t surprise me that you actually killed someone – after all, your mother showed her murderous capabilities.” Scott flinched away from Peter, avoiding looking at the man. “I mean, it’s understandable why **she** did it – she was looking out for you. What’s your excuse?”

The silence wore heavily on Scott, the stare of the man making him fidget in his seat. He was meant to be guarding Peter, ensuring that whenever the Hales made their rescue attempt that they didn’t get to him, but Peter made him nervous. There was something about the way he looked at him – like he considered Scott to be the lowest of the low and almost beneath contempt. 

“Or did you not need an excuse? Revelling in your new power, are you? I can see that the tales of you being a captive are not necessarily the _whole_ story – “

“I **was** a captive!” Scott burst out. “They had me in a cage, beat me and starved me and – “

“Really? You don’t appear to be in a cage now,” Peter continued in that silky voice. 

“Because Deucalion knows he can trust me now! He had to make sure that I was in control!” Scott jumped to his feet and stalked over to Peter, his jumbled emotions causing the words to fly from his lips. “He said that you could have cured my asthma without sending me away to Switzerland, that you only did it so that you could have Stiles to yourself! And Stiles! Stiles could have _told_ me what was going on, made sure that I was safe! Instead, he exiled me from my home – “

“Exiled?” Peter laughed. “Yes, I imagine the accommodations in Switzerland were drastically inferior to your home here in Beacon Hills!”

“That’s not the point! I didn’t know anyone – I was all alone apart from my Mom!”

“Yes, how awful of us to pay for your treatment, a spacious home and all of your bills to ensure your continued good-health whilst maintaining your humanity. How incredibly evil of us to try to keep you out of any supernatural violence – what awful people we are!”

“You’re not people – you’re monsters!”

“I’ve never killed anyone that wasn’t threatening me or my family!” Peter retorted. “Can you say the same?”

“Aiden was attacking Theo – “

“For killing his brother from what I gather!”

“Who was running away!” Scott protested. “Theo is my friend, he’s helping me adjust – “

“Helping you adjust? Wasn’t it him who dragged you into this in the first place? Wasn’t it Theo who brought you to Deucalion like a lamb to be sacrificed? Pretended to be your friend so that he could learn all about you and Stiles, and then use all of that information against you?” 

“That’s not how it happened!” Scott shook his head, refusing to accept Peter’s version of events. “You don’t know – “

“Oh but I do! Do you know why? Because that’s _exactly_ how I would have done it if I wanted to get close to you! And of course, judging by the little conversations Deucalion and I have been having, the whole point of all of this is because he wants to get his hands on Stiles,” Peter continued. Scott wondered how much damage Deucalion and Kali had inflicted on Peter that he could talk about it so casually. “He couldn’t do it here in Beacon Hills because Stiles is surrounded by his family, friends and Pack. So he went to the weakest link – you.”

“No! That’s not true – Deucalion chose me because – because – he said he saw something in me!”

“Really? What did he see in you that was worth all of this bloodshed? Why bring you back to Beacon Hills?”

“Because he wants us to have a stable territory! He thinks it would be good for me to be home!”

“Oh poor Scotty! You really are as stupid as you appear, aren’t you?”

“Shut up!” Scott realised he was standing in front of Peter, shouting in his face, trembling with rage, his eyes flaring and claws sprouting from his fingers.

“Not quite as in control as you might think then,” Peter said. “Are the Alpha Pack really who you want to be with?”

“You killed my Mom – there is **nothing** you could say that would make me join the Hale Pack now!” Scott spat out. 

“Are you sure about that?”

“About what?”

“About your mother?”

“What are you – “ They both turned as a loud crash was heard from the other room, followed by shouting and growling. Scott hesitated. He wanted to go and see what was going on, but Deucalion had instructed him to watch over Peter and use the electricity on him if necessary. A howl had him moving towards the door, desperate to help in some way but Peter spoke and caught his attention.

“Well, it looks like the time to make your choice has come sooner rather than later,” Peter said, smiling smugly at Scott. Then faster than Scott had seen either Kali or Deucalion shift to their beta form and before he could get back to the generator they had been using and switch on the electricity, Peter had changed into his full shift, the bonds holding him slipping away until the large figure of a wolf was stood staring at Scott with gleaming blue eyes.

* * *

Theo had never seen a Pack fight with such unity. 

The Hales broke into the apartment like a flood, smashing down the door and bursting into the room like an avenging force. Kali and Deucalion responded quickly, but from his place on the fire escape, he could see that they stood absolutely no chance. The Hales were all in their wolf forms, along with the kanima, and it was like watching a choreographed dance the way that they took on Kali and Deucalion. Theo watched as the kanima and two wolves surrounded Kali, herding her into a corner of the room, whilst the other three moved on Deucalion.

Kali fought with her customary viciousness, throwing punches and kicks towards any of them that got too close, but Theo could see that it was a losing battle. The kanima bounced off the wall to the right of her, its tail flicking out and catching her on the cheek and moving away before she could retaliate. She fought against the effects of its venom, but it slowed her down, and before she could gather her wits about her, one of the wolves had dived in and snapped at her throat, breaking her neck and sending her crashing to the ground, dead before her body even reached the floor.

Deucalion wasn’t fairing any better. The sword he kept hidden in his walking cane had kept the three wolves at a distance initially, but it now lay across the room from him. Even in his beta form, with the vision afforded to him by the change, he couldn’t hold off all three wolves effectively. The larger female, who Theo surmised was Laura Hale, dived in from the right and when Deucalion slammed her into the wall, the smaller female threw herself at his heels, snapping through his Achilles heel with sharp teeth before dashing away again. He stumbled against the wall, flailing to get his balance as the huge dark brown wolf leapt forwards aiming for his throat. 

Before he could see what happened to Deucalion, Theo heard the loud, coughing bark of a giant cat and turned to see that just beneath him on the fire escape was a black jaguar, its fangs bared as it growled at him. He let the change come over him, claws sprouting from his fingers, teeth descending as he prepared to defend himself.

“I really wouldn’t – I get _very_ testy when someone doesn’t play nicely with my kitty,” said a voice from above him and he looked up to see Stiles Stilinski above him on the fire escape, a gun pointed directly at Theo’s head.

* * *


	12. Confrontations & Wrong Moves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Confrontations and wrong moves...
> 
> * * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNINGS: Graphic depiction of death/dying - more info in notes at the end.

“You’re not as pretty as you used to be,” Theo said, smiling at Stiles. “I remember when I pulled your sorry ass to safety from the Argents that you were all pale skin, moles and pretty pink lips. You’re not quite the sweet looking thing you were then.”

“No? I think Peter and Chris think I’m pretty enough,” Stiles replied, his hand steady as he pointed the gun at Theo.

“So – not even wolf enough to face me without hunter weapons?” Theo taunted, gesturing to the gun. “I never could see what Duke saw in you.”

“Must be my never-ending wit and sweet personality,” Stiles said. “And do you really think I’m gonna fall for your toxic masculinity shit and drop the gun? You really don’t know me at all.”

“That could be remedied. You’ve got rid of those guys,” Theo nodded towards the window where the sounds of fighting had disappeared. “Nothing to say we couldn’t negotiate something – I’m flexible.”

“Ugh, I feel dirty even contemplating that! I mean, seriously, you might be kinda pretty in a psycho way, but what the fuck makes you think I’d want anything to do with you when I have the guys I have to come home to every night?”

“What about Scott? Do you think he’d forgive you for killing me in cold blood? He’s pretty moralistic – especially since the Hale Pack killed his mother. You’d lose your best friend in the world – that’s gotta sting.”

A howl from inside made Stiles’ flick his head and Christopher obeyed the silent command, muscling past Theo and jumping gracefully into the apartment through the open window. 

“So that leaves just you and me,” Theo said with a wide grin. “Seriously, Stiles, I’ve heard some really good things about the Hales. Maybe you guys could make a space for me – I make an excellent ally.”

“Theo, I wouldn’t have you as an ally if you were the last pair of tweezers on earth and I had a cactus shoved up my ass!” Theo gave a burst of laughter before nodding at Stiles, shifting until they were face to face.

“Fair enough. But I really don’t think you’re gonna pull that – “ BLAM!

* * *

He might be a novice, but the boy was an alpha. And Peter had spent the day being systematically tortured by two experts in the field. He had to face the fact that he might not win this fight. 

McCall’s fighting style was haphazard, more flailing than anything, but it made him unpredictable. And Peter was tiring. He found himself on the ground, McCall crouched over him, blows landing too often for him to be able to shrug them off. He could sense his pack-mates were close, but he wondered if they would make it in time and just how embarrassing it would be to die at the hands of Scott McCall.

A thud from the direction of the window, and both he and Scott turned their heads to see a giant black cat race into the room and head straight for them. Peter registered that it was Christopher coming to his rescue just before the cat landed on McCall, sending him flying off of Peter and across the room. 

Peter got to his feet, accepting the buffeting from the cat as it chuffed at him, giant head almost knocking him over as it butted at him. As one, the two of them faced McCall who had just got to his feet and they began to stalk across the room towards him. A gunshot from outside the window gave them pause, then the door opened at the same time as Stiles climbed into the room.

“Oh look, the gang’s all here,” Stiles said before rushing across the room and throwing his arms around Peter’s neck. The weight of the young man took the last of Peter’s strength and he stumbled before falling to the ground. “Jesus, you are _such_ an asshole!” Stiles said, just before the body of the cat joined them, smashing its’ head into both of them, purring loudly. Peter saw Jackson lash out with his tail and the shocked look on McCall’s face as the kanima venom took effect and sent him to the floor in a paralysed heap. The welcome sight of his pack-mates – all appearing to be safe and sound – sent relief flooding through his system and he finally allowed himself to lapse into unconsciousness.

* * *

Scott stared at Deucalion through the bars of his cell, having spent the last few hours watching as the alpha’s wounds knitted themselves back together. It was a gruesome sight, watching the sinews and tendons of his Achilles heel slowly close; the slashes and marks across his face and chest disappearing as if they had never been. Deucalion hadn’t regained consciousness as yet, lying limply on the cot in his cell. 

Scott turned to his mother, still unable to believe that she was alive. The Hales hadn’t put them in the same cell together, but they were able to hold hands through the bars for which he was grateful.

“I fucked up, Mom.”

“Yeah, Scott – me too.”

“I thought they’d killed you.”

“It was what I deserved for what I tried to do.”

“Deucalion thought you’d succeeded – that you’d managed to – ” Scott found himself unable to finish the sentence, the awful thought of what Deucalion had forced his mother to attempt crashing into his brain.

“I – they realised I was up to something and stopped me. But Scott – they would have been well within their rights to kill me on the spot. Instead, they just put me in here and questioned me. Talia even said she understood.” His Mom looked ashamed of herself, her eyes shadowed with sadness. “I tried to kill her and her unborn child and she said she understood.”

“I called them monsters – I stood by while they tortured Peter and – and then I attacked him and tried to kill him,” Scott admitted. “I only did it because they – Deucalion, Theo – they said that the Hales had killed you. I wouldn’t – “

“Don’t!” His mother interrupted him, her voice sharp. “Don’t try to justify what we did, Scott. The Hales – they paid for _everything_ in Switzerland – they tried to keep us safe and uninvolved in this and – and in return, we tried to kill them. I don’t think that anything can justify that.” Chastised, Scott fell into silence once more. 

“So what happens now?”

“I don’t know.”

“If they’re anything like other wolf packs, they’re going to kill us slowly,” Deucalion’s weak sounding voice came from the other cell and Scott stiffened. 

“Shut up!”

“We have to work together – we might be able to – “

“SHUT UP!” Scott roared, pulling his hand away from his Mother’s as the claws shot out unbidden and he could feel his eyes were flaring red. “This is all your doing! Don’t try to – “

“I didn’t make you kill Aiden – “

“SCOTT!”

“No, Mom, you don’t understand – “

“Wow, looks like everyone’s getting on well in here!” Scott turned to see that Stiles and other members of the Hale Pack had entered the room and got to his feet, stepping towards the front of his cell.

“STILES! You have to understand – “

“Don’t talk, Scott,” Stiles said, the glare he sent Scott’s way making him quail beneath the dark look. A woman he recognised as Talia Hale walked in behind Vernon Boyd, her hand resting on the gentle swell of her belly as she made her way to stand in front of the cells.

“Talia?” Deucalion got to his feet, his shocked face showing that he had at least been telling the truth when he told Scott that he thought that his mother had succeeded in killing the Alpha. “You – “

“Hello Duke – surprise!” Talia wriggled her fingers in Duke’s direction before turning to look at Scott. “Mr McCall – we will be getting to you. But first – “ Talia turned towards the door and Peter Hale walked in, holding what looked like a rifle in his hand. “I could go through a long-winded speech and ask you why you chose to act this way, Deucalion, but I find that I don’t actually care. You attacked my pack on my territory, was party to an unwilling turning of a young man, tried to murder me and my unborn child and tortured my Left Hand. There is no scenario where you walk away from this Deucalion and it seems only fitting that the method of your demise match what you tried to do to me.”

“Talia – we can work something out! There was a – “ Deucalion stopped speaking when Peter aimed the rifle at him. “This is preposterous – do you know who I am?!”

“Yes – you’re another asshole I’m going to take great pleasure in removing from my Alpha’s presence,” Peter said, firing the rifle. It made a quiet thwip sound and Scott realised that it looked more like a tranquilliser gun than anything else. Deucalion’s response told him that whatever had been in the dart, it wasn’t something normal. “You’ll be pleased to know that we were able to reverse engineer the serum you convinced Mrs McCall to use on Talia – I’m sure you’re aware of the effects it has. Goodbye, Deucalion – I would say that it’s been a pleasure but we both know I’d be lying.”

Deucalion staggered backwards from the bars, clutching at his stomach as he fell onto the cot. Scott stared in horror as the man began to writhe in agony, screaming as if he had been set on fire from the inside. 

“You can’t – “

“Shut up Scott!” Stiles replied, stepping closer to the cells and staring at Deucalion with satisfaction on his face. Scott could barely bring himself to look at the dying man, his stomach turning as Deucalion’s skin began to turn grey and shrink in on his bones. Deucalion flickered between his human and beta shift, hair sprouting before falling to the cot beneath him; his eyes flickering red then blue, then red again. 

“Talia - “ Deucalion groaned, reaching out an arm that was rapidly shrivelling beneath the rags of his clothing. On every visible piece of skin, pustules and sores began to appear, bubbling and growing speedily before some began bursting and spraying pus into the air. The stench was horrendous, decaying flesh sloughing off of Deucalion as his struggles became weaker and weaker. His neck swelled, blocking his airways so that his gasps for air became frantic, the rattling sound of his lessening breaths made worse by the terror Scott could see on his face. 

It was a relief when the sounds faded and Deucalion was finally dead.

Scott turned from the corpse and stared at the Hale Pack, realising that now that Deucalion was gone, their attention would no doubt turn fully on him and his mother. Without thinking, he reached through the bars of the cell, grabbed Stiles around the throat and glared at the Hales.

“You’re not doing that to me or my Mom! You’re gonna let us go or so help me, I’m going to rip his throat out!”

* * *

”If you don’t let him go immediately, I’m going to ensure you lose that hand before I rip your intestines out through your mouth!” Peter growled, pushing his sister back into Boyd’s waiting arms. He was peripherally aware of the beta getting Talia out of the cells and to safety, but the majority of his attention was on the alpha holding one of his mates captive. “Do you really think this is going to end well for you, McCall?”

“Scott! Scott – you have to stop! Think, please!” Melissa was sobbing as she clutched at the bars separating her from her son. “Don’t – please don’t kill him, I’m begging you!” 

Christopher stepped towards the cell, holding out his hands in a calming fashion as he approached. 

“Scott – the first thing we need is for you to stay calm. I’m not sure just how much control you have over your claws at the moment, but we don’t want them popping out and accidentally piercing something Stiles might be needing later now, do we?”

“Who are you?”

“I’m Chris Argent – I’m one of Stiles’ mates along with Peter – I’ve been with the Hale Pack ever since my family tried to kill them.”

“What?” 

“Yeah, my family were hunters and tried to kill the Hales just because they’re werewolves,” Chris continued, all the while moving to the right and keeping Scott’s attention on him. “They killed David Hale – do you remember him? He was a really good kid, loved his family, did absolutely nothing wrong – and they murdered him. And yet, here I am – safe and sound. Doesn’t that tell you something about what kind of people the Hales are?”

“Scott, please – please, honey – “ Melissa sobbed in the background. 

“I mean, if they were going to hurt you – or your Mom – don’t you think they would have done so before now?”

“I – I don’t know – I just – “

“It’s all really confusing for you right now – we get that.”

“Christopher – “

“Not now Peter.” Peter growled in frustration, realising that no matter how quickly he moved he wouldn’t be able to prevent McCall from doing serious damage to Stiles. “So, how about we try to keep this situation calm and work something out.”

“You’re not going to work anything out – you’re going to kill me and my Mom!” Scott shouted, tightening his grip on Stiles’ throat and Peter winced, fear flooding his system as he saw that McCall’s claws were beginning to emerge. Probably more by luck than judgement, McCall’s grip was perfect – if his claws fully emerged, he would cut through Stiles’ jugular and Peter’s heart almost stopped as he realised just how dangerous the situation was. 

“Peter has the rifle – he could have shot you at any point and yet, here you are – still breathing,” Christopher continued, close enough to the cell to grab Stiles. “And we wouldn’t even have to begin with you. We could have shot your mother at any time. I really think if you take a second to think this through, you’d realise that you’re panicking unnecessarily and that this doesn’t need to get any more gruesome than it already has.”

“Scott – “

“Mom – I – “ Before Scott could continue speaking, Stiles shifted into action. Almost faster than Peter could see, Stiles wrenched Scott’s hand off his throat and twisted free, pulling the limb with him. The crack of the arm being pulled backwards and breaking against the bars was loud in the cells, followed by the crunch of Stiles’ elbow hitting McCall’s nose as he shoved himself away from the bars. Peter yanked Stiles into his arms, heart thudding in his chest as he imagined all of the ways in which that could have gone wrong. 

He hadn’t been fast enough to save Stiles – even Christopher with his honeyed words wouldn’t have been able to do it. 

But they hadn’t needed to – Stiles had saved himself.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Deucalion dies from poisoning and chapter includes graphic description of how the poison works, including shrivelling skin, bursting pustules, swelling necks and lack of oxygen. Think Captain Tripps from The Stand!


	13. Resolution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So what happens next?

Melissa watched with sad eyes as Scott climbed into the waiting car, his eyes downcast, cradling his arm. Despite her best attempts, it refused to heal from the break that Stiles had inflicted, lying twisted and useless, a constant reminder of his final betrayal of his friend.

“He’ll be fine – the pack in San Francisco are used to helping supernaturals who have had a less than optimum introduction to the world,” Talia said from beside her. 

“Would you believe I’m more worried about him living with his father than all of that?” The Pack had decreed that Scott could not remain in Beacon Hills – his behaviour following capture making it impossible to trust him. However, they did take into account his turning, and everything he had suffered at Deucalion’s hands, which was why he hadn’t been summarily executed, Instead, he was going to live with his father in San Francisco – Peter had kept a careful eye on Rafe McCall ever since he had sent him from Beacon Hills all of those years ago. 

“Rafe is not the man he was when he lived here – I wouldn’t go so far as to say that he is a good man, but perhaps that will help Scott see just what he has lost,” Talia said, resting her hand on Melissa’s shoulder. “Are you all ready?” she asked, gesturing towards the small pile of suitcases.

“Yes – I have everything.” Melissa watched as the car pulled away, Scott not looking back even once. It broke her heart to see her son like that, but there was nothing she could do. She knew that the Hales’ had been merciful – there were things about her son that she was being forced to acknowledge, and getting away from everything here was for the best. “I can’t thank you enough – after everything that we did – “

“Please, Melissa – I truly do understand. Not everyone has the best introduction to our world, and yours was – horrendous. Your actions are understandable – what kind of alpha, _mother_ – would I be if I couldn’t understand why you attempted what you did?”

“Even so – I don’t think I could be so accepting,” Melissa admitted, turning away now that the vehicle had gone, taking her son away from her for heavens knew how long. 

“I don’t know so much about accepting – the situation with David gave me a whole new perspective on what I would do to protect my children,” Talia admitted, guiding Melissa back towards the house. Melissa looked up at the imposing building, unable to stop the feeling of trepidation she felt whenever she approached it. She knew that the majority of the Pack hated her and Scott – only Talia and Stiles felt ambivalent. Vernon Boyd was a constant presence at her shoulder whenever she was there, and she knew that even the slightest misstep would cause her death. And she couldn’t blame him. 

This was a chance for a new start and she was going to grab it with both hands. She had learnt a lot about herself throughout the entire debacle, not all of it was good. 

“The clinic will be an excellent place for you, Melissa – when we reached out to them, they were eager for you to come and work with them. Your medical and personal experience will be invaluable,” Talia continued speaking. 

“Would it be alright if I didn’t come in?” she asked, stopping at the steps leading up to the main door. “The cab to the airport is due in a few moments and – well, it’s not like there’s going to be a fond farewell.” She gestured towards where Boyd was stood watching them, his face a mask of stone.

Talia looked over at him mournfully before she nodded. “Of course. Would you prefer it if I left you alone?”

“I hate to appear ungrateful but – well, yes, if you wouldn’t mind,” Melissa asked, grateful once again for Talia’s compassion when the other woman merely nodded, walking with her back to where the cases were waiting.

“I’m due for my afternoon nap anyway. Riordan hounds me mercilessly if I try to keep working – “ Talia took both of Melissa’s hands in hers and looked her in the eye. “I truly hope that if we meet again, it is under better circumstances. And I believe that Scott will find that life in the San Francisco Pack won’t be too difficult – they are fair and understanding people.”

“Thank you – for everything.” Melissa watched as Talia made her way back to the house, Boyd joining her at the base of the steps and shadowing her as she went inside. With a sigh, Melissa squared her shoulders and waited for the cab that would take her on the beginning of her journey to a new life.

* * *

Derek slumped on the couch next to Jackson, watching his mother out of the corner of his eye. He still wasn’t sure he agreed with her decision regarding the McCalls – he didn’t trust Scott not to cause trouble in San Francisco. His feelings about Melissa were more confusing – he could understand her motivations, but ultimately, she had made an attempt on the life of his Alpha and mother, something he could never forgive. Laura and Cora came into the room, squabbling over ice cream and made themselves comfortable on the couch opposite.

“Where’s everyone else?” he asked when Talia sat forward slightly in her chair, his Dad providing a helping hand to keep her steady.

“We thought we would tell you four first – perhaps get some input on names,” Talia said with a smile. 

“Oh about damned time!” Laura said, waving her spoon excitedly in the air and Talia laughed.

“What about Peter, Chris and Stiles?”

“I think they’re busy,” Talia said with a smile. “I’ll fill them in later. So – are you ready?”

“More than!” Cora replied. “So – boy or girl?”

“Well, your father and I were hoping for some help finding a name ending with an ‘A’ – to continue the tradition,” Talia said, watching her children. “Maybe Diana – or Mina?”

“It’s a girl!” Everyone jumped up from their seats and rushed over to Talia to give her hugs, and the carefree sound of his mother laughing happily soothed a small part of Derek’s heart. It had been hard since the loss of David and he had been struggling with the idea of whether a new baby boy would feel like a replacement. A girl – that would be good. That was definitely something to be celebrated. 

He accepted the hug from his father, clinging to him silently as they shared a few moments remembering David. This was good – this was a fresh start.

It was a shame that Chris, Peter and Stiles weren’t here to appreciate it.

* * *

”Are you sure?” Peter asked, turning to look at Stiles. His face was resolute, his hands steady on the steering wheel as they waited. 

“Peter – we’ve already had this discussion,” Christopher said from the backseat, leaning forward between the two front seats. “Don’t keep questioning.”

“I know how I feel about the entire thing – and you have stayed neutral as is your wont,” Peter said, “I merely wanted to ensure that Stiles is happy with his decision.”

“You’ve been asking him since we left Beacon Hills – enough now.”

“Stiles – “

“Peter, I love you, but if you don’t stop questioning me, I will dump your ass at the side of the road and Christopher and I will have wild monkey sex in the back of your Ford Shelby Cobra and not clean up afterwards,” Stiles said, meeting Peter’s gaze. “I know what Talia agreed – what she wanted – but this is the right decision.”

“She won’t be happy once she finds out,” Christopher said quietly.

“Yeah, well, the joy of being the left hand – sometimes you have to make decisions that the Alpha doesn’t like or can’t make. Besides, with the baby due soon, hopefully that’ll take her mind off things,” Stiles replied. “Now – is everyone ready?”

Peter nodded, as did Christopher before settling back in his seat. 

Right on time, the vehicle carrying Scott McCall away from Beacon Hills drove by at a sedate pace and Stiles pulled out smoothly behind it, showing zero hesitation about what he was about to do. The Left Hand _always_ looked after the Pack.

* * *

**fin**

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> Stay safe, stay well and stay kind  
> We got this  
> Skargasm  
> x
> 
> * * *


End file.
